SE Leanah
by kari910
Summary: Under rewrites!
1. Strange yet Friendly Faces

It's really fuzzy... What happened back then. But I remember coming to my senses in a warm room. I didn't need to open my eyes to feel the gentle sway of the ocean, or hear the waves crashing against the edges of the boat I was on. I was laying on something soft... A bed maybe?

"How long 'till she wakes up you think?" This voice was rather deep, and worried.

"I don't know but the captain said to get him when she did." This voice was muffled like he had something in his mouth.

The smell of cigarette smoke penetrated my nose causing me to sneeze, "Wh.." I only now realized how dry my mouth was, "Where?"

"She's awake," The slightly muffled voice said. "I'll go get the captain." there was a door opening then footsteps.

I opened my eyes, everything was blurry so I blinked a couple more times. When my vision cleared I just stared at the wood ceiling until a voice pulled me from that task.

"Hello." I looked to my left to see a tan skinned man with caramel dreds and the name Yasopp written on his forehead.

"Where am I?" I asked as I sat up to survey the surroundings. Aside from the man and the chair he was sitting in, there was a large wardrobe close to the door, a writing desk behind the man, I noticed several bottles of alcoholic beverages near the desk, and very little actual writing supplies.

The man - I assumed his name was Yasopp- smiled. "Your only on the best pirate ship ever to sail the four oceans!"

_Four oceans?_ I thought, _Something about that doesn't sound righ- wait..._ "PIRATE SHIP?!"

"Yep!"

I surveyed Yasopp. He looked nice enough, but looks can be deceiving. "You aren't like... evil pirates are you?"

"What? Why would yo-"

Just then the door swung open, and a loud cheerful voice interrupted Yasopp, "I heard she was awake!"

I looked at the man whom had just entered, his eyes were sparkling with excitement and he had a smile that was so infectious it could have gotten a stone to smile. Looking at him more I finally saw the three scars going over his left eye but, despite that, I no longer thought that these pirates were evil.

"Captain!" Yasopp stood up.

The captain looked at me. "So she is awake!" the rad haired man turned to Yasopp, "Let's drink to her waking up!"

Yasopp smiled. "I'll go inform the crew!" he nearly skipped out of the room.

The red haired captain took the chair Yasopp had just left, "So..." he reached behind him and grabbed a bottle of one of the alcoholic beverages. "It's good to know your awake. Especially so soon, we found you passed out in a boat yesterday."

I closed my eyes, "Really?" This man smelled like beer, no surprise, he seemed like the kind of guy who held parties on days that end in Y. Funny that I seemed to be familiar with the smell, even though I was sure I myself had never had beer.

"Really!" He laughed, popping open the beverage. "A few of the guys took bets on when you'd wake up!"

I tried to think about what had happened before I woke up there. But... everything before I woke up was hazy. I felt like something was there, just waiting for me to get too it but as soon as I did it disappeared. I was still deep in thought when the man shoved the bottle in my hands.

"Come on! Drink up!" He encouraged as he opened another bottle, the wide smile still on his face.

"I don't drink with people I don't know." I frowned, though the man's smile stayed, completely unfaltering. "I don't think I even drink at all."

"Then let me solve that problem!" He raised his bottle, "I'm Shanks, I'm the captain of the red haired pirates. Now you tell me your name, and have a sip, then we'll know each other and you'll have at least tried."

I focused my eyes on the drink. "My name is..." My frown grew, "My name is..." _What's wrong with me? Why can't I remember my name?_ "I'm..." I blinked, there something... It was just right there, but I couldn't get at it. "I..." I dropped the bottle, swiftly moving my hands to my head. "I can't remember! I can't remember my name!"

Shanks couldn't have been a better person to be with at that moment, he calmly took sight of the situation and said, "Hey, it's all right." He placed a large warm hand on my shoulder. "Just calm down."

"I can't remember anything." I glanced over at Shanks, "I can't remember my parents, my name, or where I was born."

"It's fine, I'll just go get some one to clean up the beer you dropped," He rubbed my back. "You just try and get some more sleep."

"Thanks." I turned on my side and curled up into a ball. The bed smelled like beer, like Shanks, and it was comforting. I tried to remember, I really did. I knew I was a woman, with short brown hair and gray eyes. But I couldn't think of my name, I thought of so many names, none of them sounded right.

Yasopp came and cleaned up the beer, he said, "I hope you remember." It was soft, he probably thought I was sleeping, then he left.

"I hope I do too." I closed my eyes and drifted into sleep.


	2. New Ventures, New Friends

I woke early the next morning, and nearly screamed when I saw Shanks in the chair. After I got my heart rate back to something with in my normal range, I realized he was sound asleep. I let out a sigh of relief.

It made sense, this was probably his room, and I had hijacked it. I sighed, feeling guilty for taking his bed. I hadn't even thought about it last night.

I silently got out of his bed and made my way to the deck. I took a breath, I thought the fresh air would help clear my head a little. I stood by the rail and stared out at the sea, listening to the soft crashing of the waves.

I stood there for what felt like hours, the sun was just peeking out over the horizon when I closed my eyes. My memories were as elusive as they had been the previous night, no name, no family, no friends, no likes, no dislikes. I was a whole new person, I could be any one I wanted to be, except... well... me. I but, then again, did I really want to be me?

"Your an early riser." I didn't need to open my eyes to know it was Shanks.

"I thought you were asleep."

"Guess I'm a light sleeper."

I turned to the red-haired man, opening my eyes as I did. "I'm trying to think, so I'd appreciate it if you went back to sleep."

Shanks apparently took this to mean "Please stay and pester me." He walked up beside me, "Yeah sure."

"I said go back to sleep."

"Maybe I'm not sleepy anymore." He gave me a half-smile.

"Uhg..." There was no way I was going to win that so I just turned back to the ocean, once again putting all my weight on the railing.

"Don't lean on the railing so hard."

I stuck my tongue out at him, "I'm not a member of your crew so I can lean ah- ah.. AHCHO!" I apologized then continued, "So I can lean on the railing as hard as I want."

"Touche." Shanks said. "So, do you remember anything?"

I bit my lower lip. "Well... I'm 18 years old, I'm 5' 9", I have gray eyes, my hair is short brown, and..." My eyes slowly widened as a date came to me. "My birthday is May 22nd!" I shouted triumphantly.

Shanks smiled again, "That's amazing! You've already remembered your birthday!"

"Yeah... but I still can't remember anything else." I stared out at the ocean, the waves crashed up against the ship.

"Well..." Shanks said following my gaze to the waves, "I can only hope you remember more soon," He said, "But until then, I guess we're just going to call you Leanah."

"Leanah?" I glared at Shanks. "Now hold on a minute; since when did you decide my name was Leanah?" I started to get a feeling my name started with a J, not an L.

He stuck his tongue out at me. "Since right now." He confirmed. "Besides, I need to call you something when I introduce you to the crew!"

"You want..." I started slowly, "To introduce me... To... the crew."

"Yeah, you might as well get introduced to them." Shanks said with a giant grin on his face. He began to walk back to his cabin, then stopped, "Oh yeah, we'll be landing at the next island tomorrow, mostly because you're going to need some clothes, but also because we're running out of booze."

"Now hold up!" I said, "You're talking like I'm going to be another member on your crew!"

Shanks turned to smiled at me, "I saw the way you looked at those waves, it's the same way that I saw everybody else on this crew look at them."

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean I want to be a pira-" I saw people- three to be exact- They were all refusing someone's proposal to be a part of a pirate crew. The first was a man with a black -or is it dark green?- bandana around his head, he looked beat up, course he was also tied to poles. The second person was a woman with short orange hair, and a tee-shirt with blue stripes. The third and final person was a man with blond hair, and a _very _curly eyebrow, he wore a suit. I was sure I'd never met these people before... but I knew that they were important. _Who are they?_ I thought angrily, _Why can't I remember!?_

I grabbed the railing tighter then before, Shanks obviously saw this because in a flash he was by my side asking; "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," I said shaking off the weirdness of seeing people I'd never met before. "I'm fine." I lied as I slowly removed my hand from the railing, slowly flexing my fingers hoping the whiteness in my knuckles would go away.

Shanks frowned, "I may not have known you long, but I know that you're lying."

"Shut up." I was still trying to get the whiteness out of my knuckles. "It's nothing, just... just old memories I guess."

"More memories?" Shanks asked, I could hear it in his voice that he didn't quite believe me. I glared at him, his face changed, he smiled full force, I felt my glare dissipate, he had that infectious smile. "Alright." He said taking my 'hint'. "Let's drink to your new 'memories'."

I nodded, "Yeah." I smiled. "Let's drink!"

The next few hours became a flurry of introductions and beer. I was introduced to Benn Beckman, the first mate, He was the guy who'd been smoking when I was waking up. I was formally introduced to Yasopp, I apologized for spilling the beer he had to clean up, he just had a good laugh about it. Then I was introduced to Lucky Roo, who promptly offered my a piece of the meat he was eating saying it might help my memory problems.

I finally had succumb to Shanks incessant offerings of a drink, and just when I'd put the glass to my lips a small voice in my head said _Don't do it! It's illegal!_ I was a little shocked at the voice. I looked up at Shanks, "Should I really drink this? I mean I'm only 18!"

Shanks cocked his head side-ways in confusion, "I was drinking since I was 15. If it suddenly became illegal for people under a certain age to drink." He shook his head in mock sorrow, "Then I feel sorry for the fools who made that law."

I looked at the drink in my hand, "All right." I gulped the sweet liquid down after I had done so I stared down at my empty glass, then found myself asking for another, then another, but Shanks made me stop after my fourth because, apparently, I had an alcohol tolerance of nil. Though in my brain I could understand his reasoning, but it didn't help that the alcohol was slowing down my thought process.

"Come on! One more glass!" I begged the red haired captain whom was just smiling as he downed another glass.

"No." He said, "It's for your own safety if you just stay away from alcohol for the rest for the night."

"Why should you care? It should be my decision!" I pouted as I turned to Benn. "Come on Benn! Tell him I should be able to have another drink!"

The gray haired first mate let out a puff of smoke from his cigarette, "Sorry," he said as he smiled, "but I'll have to agree with the captain on this one."

"Awwah! You guys are no fair!" I pouted more.

"Hey." Yasopp said, "Why don't I tell a story to get your mind off the beer?"

Several members of the crew groaned, he'd apparently told his stories a lot. I just nodded, "Yes!"

And so, Yasopp started with a story about his son, Usopp, in which he was teaching his boy how to fire a slingshot. Then another about him telling Usopp about going off to sail with Shank's crew, Then he told one about a kid named Monkey D. Luffy. I could picture the two young boys in my mind, I could hear their voices, I knew these two boys, I _knew _that they were friends, but, when I told Yasopp about this he brushed me off saying that Luffy and Usopp had never met.

The drinking continued and true to his word, Yasopp's stories made me forget about having another glass of beer. Only now I was worried about going crazy, if Luffy and Usopp never met before why was I so sure that they are friends?

_What's wrong with me?_


	3. Hangovers, lying First Mates, and Shops

After that the night degraded into some of the men passing out right on the deck Shanks, however, seemed to still be going strong, I'd lost count of how many he'd had, but I _knew_ that however many he'd had was far more then any normal person could have had. Benn ended up dragging Shanks back to his room.

I followed Benn, because I honestly had no idea where the hell I was going on this giant ship. After Benn had led Shanks to his room, he told me to wait while he went to go find a place for me to sleep. I staggered into Shanks's room and sat down in the chair. I looked at the red haired, red faced pirate captain. "Sooo..."

"So how you like Yasopp's stories?"

I shrugged, "They were good, but I can't shake the feeling that Luffy and Usopp are buddies."

"They pro'ly would be if they ever met!" Shanks said happily, removing the cape he'd been wearing since this morning. I saw that he was missing his left arm, the reason came to me in a flash, it'd been eaten by a monster.

"Shanks..." I said cautiously, "Uh... your... was..."

He glanced between me and his missing arm, "I'll tell ya' tomorrow." He laid down in his bed, and within a minute, was sound asleep.

I sighed, I'd only known the man about a day, and I could guess that he was the type to fall asleep right after hitting the mattress. "Geez," I looked lazily at the door wondering where Benn was. I blinked, my eyelids felt heavy, I gently rolled my head back to rest it on the back of the chair. "I'll just close my eyes for a second." I told myself as I did so.

"Lleeaannaahh." I heard a voice call out.

I lifted my head to look at the speaker, but when I opened my eyes I got a splitting headache. "What?"

"Could you go get some headache relive-y stuff?"

"I've barely spent more than a day on this ship and you expect me to know where everything is?" The silence coming from the now hung over red haired captain was enough to prove my point. I leaned my head against the chair once more, and went back to sleep.

Benn came by and woke Shanks and I informing us that we'd reached the island. I looked at Benn irritably, "You said you'd find me a place to sleep, then left me sleeping in the c_hair_?"

Benn shrugged, "I didn't want to wake you. You looked so peacful."

I grumbled at him, my hangover gone. "What ever," I stood up, "I'm going to take a walk on the island." I walked out onto the deck of the large ship and was stopped by Benn.

"You may want to take these." The first mate said, holing out some money and a suitcase.

I eyed the suitcase then took the money, "I assume the suitcase is to keep my stuff in right?" Benn nodded pulling out a cigarette. "Good, for a moment I thought you were kicking me off the ship." I grabbed the suitcase and climbed down to solid ground.

I looked at the money in my hand. I thought of two different names, beli, and berries... _I'll have to ask Shanks which one is correct when I see him later._ I told myself as I walked into a clothing store. The Shop keeper was a thin woman with brown hair. She took one look at me.

"Oh my..." The woman moved from behind the counter, "You look tragic." I looked down at what I was wearing. A blue and green spotted ruffly long sleve v-neck tee shirt, jeans that went down to just below my knees, and black slip-ons.

"I don't think I look _that_ bad."

"Of course you don't." She said not realizing I could hear. She ushered me to a whole row of skirts of all different colors.

"Uh... I need something that I can sail comfortably in. So.. No skirts..." She shook her head and moved over to a section of short sleeve shirts. "And no short sleeves either!" I practically shouted, though... I didn't know the reason why...

The woman scoffed, "Of course."

"Hey, I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't diss my life style choice, _or _I _could_ just take my business else where." I waved my hand full of berries in front of her face.

Her eyes widened considerably. "I'm sorry." Her demeanor changed in a second. "Do you have any favorite colors?"

I thought for a second, "Green and blue."

"Oh! Of course those colors will bring out your _beautiful_ gray eyes." The woman walked off with purpose.

"You wait until after I wave my money in your face to treat me like a person, _so _typical." I muttered under my breath as I followed her. She picked out several shirts, and a few pairs of pants. I looked at the small mound of clothes. "I need to make these," I waved my arms over the mound. "Fit into this." I placed my suitcase next to the mound.

The brown haired woman sighed. "I'll see what I can do." She went to work on neatly folding the clothes in pairs and putting them in the suitcase. "The best part about the outfits I've picked out for you is that you can wear any combination of shirt and pants, and you'll still be fashionable. I even took into account that shirt your wearing now."

"What about my jeans?"

"Yes, _those_ too."

I huffed, "How much do I owe you?"

"250.000 berries."

_Well.. that answers that question._ I glanced at the berries in my hand, there were 10 50.000 notes, so I handed her five. "That should be 250.000."

The woman took the money, counted it, then waved me out the door saying, "Have a nice day!"

I walked out of the store, then looked back down at what I was wearing, _Now that I think about it. These do look a little raggedy._ "Heh. Raggedy." I broke out in a small laugh. _I don't know why I find that funny..._ I went back to the ship.

"Back from shopping?"

I glanced at Yasopp. "Nah, I'm not done yet, I just want to change out of these clothes." I sniffed, "...And maybe take a shower."

Yasopp smiled, "So what else do you need?"

I thought for a moment. "A good sword." Then continued on my merry way to go find the shower. I stopped, then turned back to Yasopp. "Where's the shower?" He laughed then led the way.

I grabbed a blue long sleeved shirt and some blue jean shorts from my suitcase, it felt like something I would normally wear, even if my black slip-ons didn't quite match the blue color scheme. The shower wasn't to far from Shank's room, I could probably guess why. I pulled off my shirt and saw something that I wish I hadn't forgotten.

There were scars. Tons of scars going vertically along my arms, as well as drawn butterflies at the edge of my wrists. Benn, Yasopp and Shanks all seemed proud of the scars they had, but something in the back of my mind told me these were not scars to be proud of. _They are weakness. You're weak. You always were._ A new, nasty voice in the back of my head told me. _And you always will be._

I quickly showered and pulled on my fresh new clothes. Shaking my head at the voice I whispered, "No... I'm not that person any more. I don't even know who that person _is_."

I set my sights on finding a sword, thinking it a welcome distraction. I looked at the berries I had left. "250.000... That should buy me a decent blade..." I said. _Why am I so sure I even know how to use a sword?_ I asked my self.

I set off back into the small town for a sword. Benn stopped me as I was leaving the ship. I smirked, "Deja Vu."

"Leaving again?" He asked, tapping ash from the tip of his cigarette.

"Yeah, I need a sword."

He smirked, "The rest of us will be in the bar on the far side of town when your done."

"And have Shanks talking me into drinking again? No thanks."

"He's still got a hang over from last night's party. I think you'll be safe drinking with us." There was something that made me think he wasn't telling the full truth.

I cocked my eyebrow, "Really? You'd leave a hung over Shanks in the ship all alone, to go drink?"

He shrugged, "There will be people on the ship with him." A group of the crew ran off the ship, and Benn followed.

I continued to leave while muttering, "Some first mate _you_ are."

The trek to the weapon's shop was far longer then the one to the clothes shop. _I mean seriously, Why would you place a sword shop on the other side of the town right next to a- a bar..._ I glanced between the two places, _I hate you Benn..._ I thought grimly as I entered the shop.

As I entered the sales clerk looked up at me. He was getting high in years, gray hair beginning to thin out, but a feeling at the back of my neck told me he was still a force to be reckoned with. "Hello," He greeted, "Are you looking for anything specific?"

I thought for a moment, then shook my head. "No. I'm just looking." I said as I advanced to one of the many shelves of weapons lining the store. My eyes were drawn to a small kogatana, I picked it up and examined it closer. The hilt was a plain light gray, but the sheath was far more decorated. First there was a medium sized emerald, and a small ruby line coming off of that, my eyes followed the ruby line to the other side of the sheath, it also connected with a medium sized topaz, then the ruby line continued back to the emerald.

I held the sheath firmly in my right hand as I drew the kogatana out with my left. I slashed the air with it a few times, _It's easy to hold..._ I flipped the kogatana around, _both ways,I could easily hide the it and draw it to make a surprise attack. _I looked at the old shop keeper. "How much is this?"

He glanced at the kogatana in my hand. "5.000.000 berries."

"Yesh..." I said as I put the kogatana down, _It costs ten times what I started with..._ I started browsing other swords but my eyes always strayed back to the kogatana. _Man I wish I could buy that... maybe I should just go ask Benn if he can get it for me..._ I was honestly about to, until and unwanted visitor slammed opened the door to the shop.

"Hey Shopkeep! My mate there needs the best sword you got!" My eye twitched, S_urely he isn't!_ I didn't even want to turn around. _But I thought he had a hangover!_


	4. OW Amaterasu, Kogatana, and Shanks's Arm

My eye kept twitching as he advanced though the shop. "I don't care how much it costs." He said.

I whirled around to face him, "CAPTAIN!" I screeched, then caught myself, "Oh god! I just called him captain!"

The old shop keeper stared at Shanks, then pulled out a sheet of paper, glancing between the paper and Shanks the man's eyes widened in horror. He turned to me and asked, "_This_ man is _your_ captain?"

"No! He's not! I'm not even a pirate! Though I have sort of been sailing with him for a few days..."

The man was now stumbling to grab a sword from the counter behind him. Shanks turned to me, "So, I heard from Benn that you got new clothes?"

"Yeah," I stared at him, "I can buy my own damn sword you know."

"I know, but Benn didn't really give you that much money," Shanks shrugged. "Plus, I just want to make sure you get a reliable blade that won't break after so many uses."

I grumbled as the shop keeper finally placed a sword on the counter. "This," He said gesturing to the sword in front of him, "Is the O Wazamono Amaterasu." I stepped up to the sword and examined it, it had an off green hilt with a soft gray sheath.

My breath was stolen by the fine blade, "Wow..." I took the blade off the counter, I drew it and looked into the blade, my reflection stared back at me. I made an experimental slash though the air, "It's lighter then my saber back home." I said as I sheathed the sword.

"What does your saber look like?"

"It's a long thin blade with a curved handle... It was a fencing sword..." my voice faded lightly as I finished that sentence. "I remember what my old saber looks like!" I said smiling.

Shanks smiled full force. "Just a little prodding."

"I have to say thanks." I sheathed Amaterasu.

"Your welcome." Shanks turned to the man, "How much?"

He seemed to be less frightened now that he'd seen Shanks smiling. "600.000.000."

"Done." Shanks said pulling out a wad of money, then paused and turned to me, "Come to think of it, you looked like you had your heart set on something else when I came in."

"Yeah... sort of..." I glanced at the kogatana, taking a step towards it.

Shanks took the hint and picked up the kogatana I'd had my eye on. He examined it, then looked at me. "You have good taste, A certain flare." he said as he placed the kogatana on the counter next to the sword, "Unlike someone _else_ I know."

"Who?" I asked.

"Oh nobody important. Who knows, maybe you'll meet him if you keep hanging around with us." He said as he turned to the shop keeper, "How much do I owe you?"

"That would be 605.000.000 berries." Shanks placed a stack of money in the man's hand. I took my new sword and kogatana. We both waltzed out of the weapon shop together.

"You thinking what I'm thinking?" I asked Shanks as we stood in front of the bar.

"Yeah." He said, a smile evident on his face. I couldn't help but smile either, I clutched my sword and kogatana close as we entered the bar.

Benn looked at me, "Changed your mind?"

"_He_ changed my mind." I said as I jerked my head in Shanks direction, then turned a glare on him, "You lied to me." Benn smirked and I continued, "Other than that I got a sword and a kogatana." I held out the Amaterasu and kogatana for Benn and any other member of the crew to see.

"Wow." Yasopp said staring at the Amaterasu, "That's an O Wazamono isn't it?"

"Yep. It's the Amaterasu." I said as I set the legendary sword down and held my kogatana out so they could see it better. "And this is my new kogatana, I had my eye on it before Shanks stormed the shop, then he bought it for me after the shop keeper showed us the Amaterasu."

"Dang," Yasopp said, "You've got good taste."

"Exactly what I said!" The captain declared as he sat down and ordered some drinks for the two of us.

I sat across from him, then, thinking back to the previous night said, "Hey Shanks, would you mind telling me about your arm?"

The room went silent for a moment, Shanks downed a whole glass, ordered more, then said, "It all started about 8 years ago..."

The story went on from there to talk about Luffy's hometown, then more about Luffy in general. Finally after we'd both had quite a few drinks- though thinking back, I had WAY more then just four drinks that night- Shanks got to talking about some mountain bandits, they trash talked Shanks, trashed the bar, then left.

"That shwas mean offfff them." I said, the slur evident in my voice.

Shanks shrugged downing another glass, "It didn't matter much to us, but Luffy took it really hard. He shouted at us saying that we weren't men if we were just going to take their insults like that."

I felt some of my composure come back, "What happened next?"

Shanks shrugged, "He got in a one-on-one fight with the leader- mind you, he _thought_ he could take on anybody and win as long as his intentions were good enough." Shanks poured himself another glass. "Then we found them, they'd caused commotion all over town, Makano was worried about Luffy, and the mayor was just trying to make sure that nobody got hurt. Needless to say we took care of every mountain bandit there was except the leader who made off with Luffy. He went out to sea on a small fishing boat. Think of it, a mountain bandit at sea, he didn't know much about the area, so he didn't know about the Sea King that usually prowled though."

I stared at the floor, the scene Shanks described playing vividly in my head. A tall scruffy man stood holding a small black haired boy by the collar. The young boy- Luffy- struggles as he's thrown into the water. The man laughs, then is silenced by the monster behind him. Luffy watches in horror as the monster sets it sight on him, it jumps, mouth wide, ready for an after meal snack. Suddenly Luffy's saved from the monster by Shanks. With a glare and a word, Shanks had the monster running. Still holding Luffy close, Shanks tries to comfort the boy whom is now in tears. He tries to tell Luffy that everything is OK, but the boy protests, "Your arm! Your ARM!" He cries, his worries that it's his fault are cast aside by Shanks.

"He thought it was his fault..." I said softly, "He was scared you wouldn't talk to him anymore..." I completely forgot about being drunk.

"He wouldn't stop apologizing for _days_. Then when it came time to get back to my important duties, he met us by the docks as we were leaving, he said that one day he'd make his-"

"Own pirate crew that would eventually surpass yours, because he's going to be King of the Pirates." I said finishing what Shanks was saying. The room went silent, Shanks nodded taking a large drink from his glass. Mid-drink he did a spit take.

"How'd you know that?!" He demanded.

I raised my hands in defense, "I don't know! It just slipped out!" I looked at the crew, they were all staring at me, "I'm serious! Even as Shanks was telling the story I just knew how it would end! Like... Like I know that Shanks used to have a straw hat he gave to Luffy, symbolizing the promise! And... and..." I blinked, my mind was going hazy. "I know that Lucky shot the mountain bandit that had a gun to his head, then... Benn took the rest out..." All those beers were catching up to me. "I... I remember... I know I do... I know-" My stomach lurched threatening to dump its contents, I stood up and staggered to the door. "I know-" My legs buckled under me, vision clouded over, and began hearing voices.

"Damn it! How many drinks did she have?" Shanks called worryingly.

"I don't know! I thought you were keeping track!" Yasopp yelled.

"No use yelling about it," Ben said. _Always the voice of reason_ I thought as I embraced the darkness.


	5. A Dream of Time Gone by and Questions

My body was sore, I could tell that much. The day previous to this one was all one big haze in my memory, I could only remember getting the Amaterasu and my kogatana, after that... nothing. I tried to open my eyes, but the light stabbed my nerves. "Ahuuuu..." I groaned. "My head!"

"Good to see your awake." The ship's doctor said.

"I feel like I got repeatedly run over by a semi." I moaned pulling the blankets over my head.

"I don't know what a semi is, but yeah, I'm sure I'd feel that way too, if I drank as much as you did last night."

_Last night..._ I thought hard, _That's right, after Shanks paid for the Amaterasu and kogatana we went to the bar, he started telling me about Luffy, then... then..._ A new pain quickly swept through my head. I let out another groan of pain.

"You should know that when Benn brought you in you were talking about hawks and aces."

_Hawks and aces? _I thought, _Why would I talk about hawks and aces? _I pondered this, when the blankets that had been protecting my eyes were thrown off, and some horrible tasting content shoved down my throat. I sat up immediately, coughing and sputtering. "What the hell?" I asked, now glaring at the doctor.

"Sorry, but if you were going to be anything like the captain when he gets a hang over like yours, it had to be done." He said it like it was something he did often. "I applaud you for not throwing up though, it means you've got great potential as a drinker."

"And I'm supposed to feel proud about that?"

"With the amount of drinking done on this ship? Yes, feel very _very_ proud."

"Well doc, this was an enlightening conversation, but I'd like some more sleep." I said pulling the blanket back over my head.

There were no protests from the Doc, so I closed my eyes and went back to sleep.

_A warm day. A safe place._

_I sat curled up on my couch, reading a book. The book itself seemed to be a blur, though I knew I liked it._

"_Excuse me." A soft voice started pulling me from my reading. I looked up, a prickly feeling started on the back of my neck._

"_Who's there?" I asked, slowly shutting my book._

"_I'm really quite sorry for this, dear." The voice did sound repentant, but there was something else to the voice. In the blink an eye a blinding light flooded into the room. "Sorry, dear." The voice said again._

"_Wha-!?"_ Suddenly I was being shaken.

The rude awakening was thanks to Shanks. "Leanah?"

I glared up at the rad haired man, "I was having a really good dream..." _speaking of... I can't remember half of it..._ "So you better have a _really_ good reason for waking me up."

"It's just that you were tossing and turning," he placed his hand on his hip, "It looked like you were having a nightmare to me."

"Chs. I wasn't having a nightmare, nightmares usually don't usually involve reading a good book."

"So you like to read?" Shanks asked with a child like sparkle in his eye.

"No." I didn't know what worried me more, the fact that I wasn't sure or the fact that I just wanted to deny that I liked anything that might be a part of my old life. "Though... I think in the book I was reading there was something about a place called Alabasta..."

Shanks brightened up again, "I know where Alabasta is! It's on the Grand Line."

I blinked propping myself up on my elbow, "The... Grand Line?"

"Yeah, it's a long strip of sea in the world, and arguably the most dangerous." Shanks leaned against the wall of the room, "I _should_ be there right now, but I thought it'd be nice to visit the East Blue seeing as I hadn't been here in 9 years."

"Sooo... you're just slacking off."

"No." He defended, "I just... yeah... I am sorta just slacking off..."

I sighed, "Well, that's nice, but what am I gonna do when you all need to go back?"

Shanks squinted, stroking his chin thoughtfully. Then after a moment of thought, a huge grin spread across his face, "How 'bout you join our crew?"

"Ehhh? Me? Join your crew?" I swallowed, "I dunno Shanks... I mean we've only known each other for three days, and I mean, I don't know if I'm that good of a fighter. I think I'd be more of a draw back to your crew, then a true addition. Because, A crew should be able to complement each other right? And your crew already has all these great people, also I don't want to be a bother. Then there's the memory thing, I mean I've remembered a little more then when I first woke up, but still, 18 years worth of memories are sort of missing, I don't even know my own name yet. And be-"

"Breath Leanah!" Shanks said suddenly, and he was right, I hadn't taken a single breath since I started my rant.

"Sorry." I muttered, "I just don't feel right on this ship." I stared down at the wooden floor. "I get the feeling that I'm not supposed to be here, though truthfully, the only thing I would hate more right now, would be to leave."

"Then be our passenger," He offered, "Don't decide just yet, none of us are really in any hurry to get back."

I laughed, "I just became your extended vacation."

Shanks laughed as well. "Yeah, you did."

My heart felt lighter now, though it was still weighed down by some doubts I hoped to keep hidden from Shanks. I could tell that if he knew, he wouldn't be able to keep his nose out of my my business, being the good man he is.

I stood up and stretched out. "I think it's time I changed." I waved Shanks out. He left and I shut the door after him, I leaned against the door. "What do I do?" I asked myself. "He really seems dead set on me joining," I sighed, staring down at my arms, the memory of the scars hidden by my shirt still fresh in my mind. "What do I do?"


	6. A Challenge and a Deal

I changed into a sensible pair of long tan pants and a red shirt, then I strapped my sword and kogatana to my right hip and made my way out onto the deck. I was greeted by smiles from every one as they went about their business. I went and stood in the same place I had my first day on this boat, I stared out at the waves.

_Beautiful..._ I thought, _The waves are just beautiful._

"Day dreaming?"

I looked behind me to see Benn smirking. "Nothing wrong with that, I'm a passenger on this ship."

Benn pulled out a cigarette, "I didn't say anything." He lit it.

"Yeah, I know you didn't." I sighed at turned back to the ocean, "Do you see this view _every_ day?"

"Some days are better than others, but yes."

I took a deep breath, "It makes me consider..." I stabbed that sentence with a metaphorical knife before I could finish it. "Nothing, I'm still just a passenger and will be until I decide to leave." I said firming myself for some sort of retort from Benn. Yet none came.

I glanced back behind me, no one was there. I sunk lower so my chin was resting on the railing. My hands strayed down to the Amaterasu, I really wanted to try it out, but everybody was really busy... "Hey."

I glanced back at Shanks, "Hello."

He eyed my hand that was hovering over my blade. "You want some practice?"

I sighed, "Is it really so obvious." I straightened up, "Yeah, I am sorta itching to get some use out of these." I patted my blades.

Shanks thought for a moment, "Alright, let's see how good you are." Shanks drew his own blade.

My eyes widened, "You... Want me... to fight you? ARE YOU CRAZY?! There's no way I'm anywhere close to your skill! I mean, just looking at you I can tell we're worlds apart in skill!"

Shanks frowned, "I swear, you act like _him_. You just drew yourself a line that you're most likely never going to cross unless you have to." He waved his blade accusingly at me, "You can't judge a person's skill on how they look, I firmly believe that people will rise to the expectations you put them to. Now come on! You wanted to test them, so let test them!"

I sighed, "Fine." I pulled the Amaterasu out with my left hand, my right just hovering over my kogatana. I shifted into a stance that felt comfortable and waited, I saw Shanks shift slightly, I dodged to the left, fully expecting to get hit, but somehow I just barely missed his blade.

"Good." Shanks commented as he readied himself for another attack. I dodged back to the right, and just barely missed getting hit again. "Very good."

I kept on defense for a while longer, then launched my own attack, I twirled around and sliced downward with my blade. Shanks and I locked blades, we got a good look at the others eyes. _His eyes.. Oh god... they look so... so __**cold**__._

I had no doubt that Shanks could see me sweat under his intense stare. My free hand moved almost on it's own, I grabbed my kogatana firmly in my right hand and smashed the hilt into Shanks wrist. It didn't have the desired effect seeing as his hold on his sword only got tighter, though I obviously caught him off guard because I was able to unlock our blades and take the true offensive. I slashed a few more times with my kogatana, then sheathed it again. I didn't know what I was doing but I had a good feeling.

"Wha-?" Shanks started but I ignored him as I placed both my hands on the Amaterasu's hilt. I concentrated, I felt a small bead of sweat slowly crawl down my forehead. With in one powerful slash, something separated from my blade. It was a long thin green wave. I kept my concentration steady, willing it to move at Shanks. That proved to hard for my already exhausted body, I lost concentration on the wave and it went haywire, it destroyed a few boxes that were near by, and scared the living daylights out of a few of the crew mates. Shanks was able to stop it before it caused too much damage.

I stared wide eyed at the damage I'd caused. "The hell?" I said out loud as the exhaustion took hold of the rest of my body forcing me to collapse, "Did... I do _that?_"

"Yep." Shanks said matter-of-factually. "I knew that there was more to you than meets the eye." He sheath his sword. "That was some move you pulled there. I think you've earned the right to stay on this ship as a 'passenger' as long as you want." He beamed a large smile my way.

"Yeah... I guess so..." I paused as Shanks started to turn away. "Hey wait!" He turned around, "I want to talk to you." I waved the crowd of people gathering around us away as he leaned down. "I... I want you to train me."

"Well... I don't normally train passengers..."

"Please!" I begged, "I'll do anything! Just train me!"

A devilish smile crossed his face. "Anything? I accept your offer." He walked away laughing.

I paled, I knew exactly what he wanted. _I just joined a __**pirate crew**__!_


	7. Voice of Weakness, Voice of Trust

I was sore about being forced to join the crew for a few days, (Shanks would say something like "You did _willingly_ join! You offered anything!") I refused to acknowledge him for two days. Then he just put it upon himself to make my life harder.

He'd always annoy me when I was doing the stuff he told me to do. Sometimes he'd goad me into "practicing" on him.

Training with Shanks wasn't so bad, it really killed my muscles at first, then after about a month of sore limbs it didn't bother me any more. Then after that Shanks focused on helping me keep my concentration. I called the move I used on Shanks Ha-di, I had no idea what it meant but it felt fitting for that attack. One that I made up using both the Amaterasu and my kogatana was Tjesu heru, where I place the hilts of both blades together and thrust the blades at the enemy. It's very powerful, though Shanks told me it should only be used in practice duels or when desperate.

"How... am I doing?" I huffed out one day as I was doing my exercises.

"Very good, keep it up." I glanced up at Shanks.

He wasn't even paying attention. I pushed myself harder to stop myself from strangling him. "If your going to say you're watching at least pay attention!" I half-shouted at him.

"But I am." he said, I could _hear_ the smirk in his voice.

"No you're not!"

He said something inaudible, but I didn't care what he'd said, I just pushed myself harder. After a few moments Shanks said, "If you push yourself any harder your going to pass out from exhaustion."

I stopped and took a break. Shanks once again said something, but I was breathing to heavily to be able to hear him. "What?"

Shanks looked a little surprised, then smiled, "I said you worked yourself to hard."

_It's because I wanted to impress you, then to stop myself from strangling you._ I thought.

"So?"

"So, if you keep training like that you're going to end up dead before you even fight your first fight!"

I looked away. "Sorry." Shanks always chastised me for working to hard, he seemed like a worrying parent. Which I guess isn't to far off from how our relationship is, I was the rebellious/still-sore-I-had-to-join-a-pirate-crew teenage daughter, he was the drunken-yet-strict father.

"It's OK. I just wish you'd stop pushing yourself so hard."

"My business, not yours." I said.

"I don't care, you don't have to prove anything to me."

"I'm not trying to prove anything to _you_."

"Then who?"

I started to say something, but the words died in my throat. I looked around at all my crew mates, I knew I would never need to prove myself to them. So why was I so determined to prove myself? "I... I don't know..." _You're weak._ The nasty voice reminded me. _And no amount of training you do will make you stronger._ "Shut up!" I hissed at it, drawing the attention of everyone on deck at the time.

Nothing was said, nothing needed to be said. Everyone went about what they'd been doing before, Shanks was just staring at me. "Leanah," He started softly, "What's bothering you?"

"Nothing." I lied, as I got up, "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to my room." After the walk to my room I sat down on my bed, the surrounding area was rather plain, four walls, a door, my suitcase sitting haphazardly on the floor near a large chest filled with my clothes, my swords were leaning against the chest. I placed my head in my hands. That dream from a while ago was still bothering me. Was that a memory? Something from my past? What was that voice who apologized?

There was a soft rap on my door. "Go away."

The door opened anyway, "My ship." Shanks closed the door behind him. "Now tell me what's wrong?"

"When did you become my dad?!" I demanded as I glared at him. "I don't need any help!" I turned completely away from him, crossing my arms.

"You say no, but your actions say yes."

"Oh don't pull any of that crap on me, I can fix my own problems."

He stood there stubbornly, "And I think that's your problem, you've never once asked any of us for help, or asked us anything. How do expect us to help if you never _say_ anything?"

"Easy, I don't expect your help. I've always had to do things on my own. I've always been alone, I don't need any help." I shooed him away, rubbing my arms, the scars there making me nervous with him this close, I didn't want him to see them, even though I had no idea what they meant.

Shanks stayed silent, and leaned against the door. After a long moment of thought for the both of us he said, "While it's all good that you remembered that, that is one thing I will _not_ stand for on my ship." He walked over and knelt down, I reluctantly turned to him so we could see eye-to-eye, "Leanah, I don't care what your life was like before, or even if you remember what it was like before! Your on _my_ ship and a part of _my_ crew, we rely on each other on this ship, if you need anything- and I do mean _anything_-you just tell me." He pulled me into the best hug a one-armed guy could give, "You don't have to keep your problems to yourself anymore. So _stop_."

Tears burst from where ever I'd been hiding them. "Th.. thank you captain." I leaned into his shoulder and started crying. "I d... don't know whats wrong with me!" I sobbed, "I want to remember! I really do! Yet... I don't, I'm afraid to get them back. Because, what if I do and I don't like who I was? I'd hate it to never get them back, and I'd hate it to get them back!"

He gently whispered, "It's alright. It doesn't matter, your memories don't define _you_, _you_ define _you_."

His words weren't at all surprising, I'd come to expect things like this from him. I hugged him back, my tears dried. "Thank you."

Shanks stood up, "Hey, it's the least I could do." He smiled, is there anything you want to talk about?"

I smiled, then became deadly serious, "I have something I want to show you, but you have to promise you won't say anything."

"I promise."

I slowly started to roll up my sleeve, keeping my wrist against my chest, "I-" my voice was cut off by another person shouting.

"Hey Boss! I got some new I _know_ you're going to love!"

Shanks and I exchanged glances, I knew we were thinking the exact same thing. We both rushed out of the room and were on the deck in no time flat. I had already rolled my sleeve back down.

"What is it?" He asked the new crew mate I'd never seen before.

"Well, I assume you've heard that Buggy had been causing some trouble here in the East Blue."

"Yeah..."

"Well some new pirate burst onto the scene and up-rooted Buggy, he's some new up start."

"Name?"

"Wasn't able to catch one." The man said sighing.

A clear name appeared in my head, _Monkey D. Luffy_ I thought, then dismissed that. _Luffy- by Shanks description would only be 16 years old. That's three years younger than I am, still,_ I thought stubbornly _Shanks was 14 when he joined his old crew, so who says Luffy can't make one at 16?_

"Hey." I said suddenly, "I don't know about you guys... but I could _really_ go for a drink right about now."

This got some glances from the crew, whom all looked to Shanks. he tilted his head in thought, then an absolutely huge smile dominated his face, "Why not?"

There was much rejoicing (and beer)! After a few well placed alcoholic beverages I raised my glass and declared, "To Buggy the clown, that new pirate, and many more adventures!" This got cheers from the drunken portion of the crew, and odd stares from the still somewhat sober part of the crew.

"Agreed!" Shanks shouted as he downed another glass. He beamed at me, "Another toast! To my crew, my old crew, and to the future king of the pirates!" More cheers and drinking from every one.

_I love this ship,_ I thought to myself as I drank another glass, _I really hate to ask it... I'll wait just a few more days. Yeah that sounds good... A few more days with these guys, then I'm going to ask to leave the ship._ I felt horrible. _I don't want to go!_


	8. A request and a Job

I lived those few days I promised myself to the fullest. They'd all noticed the change in my behavior, some took it as finally opening up, others took it as a warning that I'd gotten some rare disease (I cleared that one up very quickly), yet still others saw through it and knew what I was going to ask Shanks before I'd even decided myself what I was going to say.

As you could probably guess Benn was among the third party, and he wasted no time making it known to me. He'd always drop "subtle" hints, but never when Shanks was around. Eventually I finally got tired of him dropping his hints. "I get it!" I half yelled at him one day, "I know you know that I'm going to ask Shanks to leave the ship, but must you keep reminding me!?"

Benn just laughed slightly, "I just thought you might want to know, that we're heading for the Grand Line in six months."

"Six months..." I repeated softly, _that's how long I've been on this ship. I can't believe it's already been six months... _"I guess... I should..."

Benn nodded, "You should," a mischievous smile passed the first mate's face, "I don't know how much longer I can keep this secret."

"Oh shoot me." I said, "I'm going to tell Shanks today." I lied.

Benn lit his cigarette and blew a puff of smoke into my face, "Of course you are." He said as he put one of his hands on my shoulder, then shoved my though the semi-open door that was to my left.

On the other side of the door I saw a _very_ confused Shanks. "What?" He asked bewildered.

"May God damn you Benn Beckman." I said under my breath. I looked up at Shanks, "Can I... ask a favor?"

"Yes?" He said questioningly.

"Well, I was wondering... I dunno, if you could maybe drop me off somewhere before the Grand Line?"

Shanks just glanced away, coughed awkwardly, then looked back at me, "I have no problem with that, we were going to stop off somewhere today anyway, I figured I should treat the crew to some restaurant quality food."

"Yeah," I shifted, "I had originally planed to ask when you were drunk, but Benn seemed to have different ideas." I growled softly. "I just don't really want to go to the Grand Line with you guys, I feel like you guys would have to pull my weight, I don't want to have you guys pulling my weight."

Shanks nodded, "All right, I understand."

"Thanks," I said not bothering to hide my sigh of relief. "I was afraid you wouldn't understand."

He shrugged nonchalantly, "Like I said, anything."

I felt like I'd stabbed myself with a knife, "Yeah, I remember." I walked away, rubbing my left arm, I'd noticed I did that a lot when I got nervous or was thinking about something that bothered me. _That's how Benn knew..._ I thought glumly, _he just read me like a book._

The next few hours passed relatively quickly and we docked a a giant fish.

Well... Fish shaped boat, but you catch my drift. It had the word "Baratie" written on the side, and did in fact look rather classy. We all slowly filed onto the restaurant.

"Excuse me you damn crooks," A large man stopped us at the door, he didn't seem very nice for someone who runs the house of a restaurant. "But do you have money?"

Shanks looked at the large man like he was crazy, "Of course I have money. What kind of person comes to a restaurant with out money?"

The large man changed his tone, "Oh course dear customer, please wait while I find seats for you all."

"Tsh." Treating_ us like common criminals until we mention money._ I thought as the large man ascended a set of stairs in the middle of the room. "_So_ typical."

Shanks cast a glance in my direction, "What?"

"Nothing, I was just expecting better service at a place that looks so high class." _Because being called a "damn crook" before a meal isn't very high class._

There was a loud thump on the floor above us, I jumped a bit. Shortly after a blond haired man walked down the stairs. He looked pretty ticked, but quickly prepared several tables that I assumed were for us.

After preparing the tables the blond haired man walked briskly over to us, "Your tables are over there." He said as he shoved his hand into one of the pockets of his black suit and pulled out a cigarette. "The waiters will be around shortly with your..." He caught my eye. "Oh great sea goddess!" in a split second he was on one knee in front of me. "This is truly a great day, to be blessed with such beauty!"

I could hear Benn, Shanks, and Yasopp stifling laughs. "Yeah, sure." I said, I had no idea why he was saying these things, from where I stood I didn't think I looked that great. My shirt was ruffled due to my constant arm rubbing and pacing, my pants were haphazardly rolled up to just above my knee because the long pant legs were getting in my way during training, and don't _even_ get me started on my hair. _And your scars._ The voice said, _With your scars you'll never be beautiful._

Still the man, gently took my hand in his and led me to one of the tables. "And you're so modest! But you need not be, you truly are a vision of beauty! Just tell me what you wish and I shall get it for you."

"Yeah, that's nice Sanji, but I'd really just like it it you'd seat my friends aswe..." My voice died out as I realized, _I called him by name!_ I thought, _Do I know him? He does seem familiar... but where have I seen him?_

Sanji was as bewildered as I was. "Do we-?" he started, then stopped as Shanks and Benn were now right behind him. He turned an angry scowl on his face. "Do you mind?"

My captain smirked, "You gonna do something about it?"

Sanji advanced towards Shanks, a pit formed in my stomach, I could tell that Sanji was good with his legs, but my captain was better with a sword. My eyes widened as Benn and the rest of the crew did nothing. I delicately called out, "Oh Sanji, I was hoping for some food."

Sanji's eyes turned into hearts as he said, "Of course my dear!" He ran off.

I waved an accusing finger at Shanks and the crew. "You would have let him fight you, when you all knew he stood no chance!"

He shrugged, "If he wanted to fight who was I to deny him that?"

"A jerk, I know that you'd only need a minute- if even that- and poor Sanji would be dead, or at the least badly beaten." I crossed my legs and folded my hands over my knees. "He has no idea who you are," I glared at him.

Shanks shivered, "Alright."

A good meal (and a couple of beers) later, Sanji and I were deep in a conversation when he brought up the whole name thing earlier.

"So how did you know my name?" He asked as he placed another fruit plate on the table in front of me.

"I don't really know myself."

"She's right," My (by now drunk) captain said. "She doesn't know herself!"

I felt a tick mark appear on my forehead, "That's _not_ what I _meant_, and _no more beer for you_!" I half shouted at him.

There was a moan from Shanks, "Buh whyyy?" He asked as he gripped his glass. Sanji gave me no time to reply as he eagerly separated the red haired pirate from his beer.

I sighed and picked a large strawberry off my plate. "You're so childish sometimes." I sighed at him, "Honestly captain, would you like some cheese to go with that whine?"

Benn and Yasopp found this funny, Shanks- understandably- did not. "That's not funny!" Shanks said as Sanji came back holding a smooth bottle in his right hand and a small wine glass in his left.

"Here you are my dear." He set the wine glass in front of me.

"Oh, no thanks. I have a low alcohol tolerance." He ignored me and poured the glass anyway. I sighed and picked up the glass, I took a small sip. "Woah," I took another, "I think I prefer this to beer."

Shanks made a small noise, "I could never get used to the stuff."

"It's all that _ale_ you drink." I said, not bothering to hide the edge to my voice. "Any way," I continued, "Before my captain interrupted us, I was about to say I've hand amnesia fro the past six months so I don't really know if I've ever met you before, I was hoping you might be able to clear that up for me."

Sanji thought for a moment then, once again kneeling before me, produced a rose- wait... scratch that... a _sparkling_ _rose_. "I'm sorry I couldn't be of use my fair madden, but alas I have never seen your beauty before now."

"Oh god for shame," I whispered to myself, "I know your name, but you don't know mine." I set the wine glass back on the table and took the rose. "My name is Leanah."

"Oh, how fitting a beautiful name for a beautiful wom-" Sanji was cut off by a loud call.

"SANJI, GET IN HERE!"

"Shitty old man." he grumbled as he walked up the stairs.

I blinked, then looked at the wine glass, "I sort a feel like I got him in trouble..."

Shanks shrugged, "He probably had it coming."

"Wow, you're just soooo nice." I said, sarcasm evident.

Shanks took it and ran, "I know right?" his sarcasm rivaled mine. "Any way, next time a waiter comes by I'm going ask to see the head chef."

I had a feeling I knew what he was going to say next but I still asked, "Why?"

"To get you a job." _I knew it._ I thought.

"Thanks, I think it might be nice to work here." I said ignoring the sudden soft prickling on the back of my neck.

We didn't see Sanji for quite a bit longer, when a waiter came asking if we were done Shanks mentioned wanting to see the head chef. The waiter fumbled a bit, then regaining his cool, left.

That prickly feeling stuck even after that point where the waiter had left. I considered telling Shanks, but I figured that he was doing enough for me as is. I uncrossed my legs and sipped more of the wine, could this day get anymore weird?

And just as I had asked, the universe supplied. Not more then 10 minutes later a rather old man walked over to our tables, he had a _long_ blond mustache that was braided so it stuck near straight out. He was also wearing one of those _huge_ chef hats that netted him at the least another foot of height. He glanced at Shanks then motioned for the captain to follow.

I watched as the two left to talk, then stood up. "Welp... I'm going to go pack my things."

Yasopp stared at me, "How are you sure he's going to get you the job?"

"It's Shanks." I rationalized, "Of course he'll get me the job." I finished the wine then walked to the ship to retrieve my suitcase and swords. What ever lay a head, I could feel the adventure, and over all, it wasn't all that bad.


	9. Customers and Pirates

"You really don't need to do this." I told Sanji one day. He was offering me a small bowl of fresh fruit after he'd beat up a customer who'd been harassing me. It was annoying really. This was another time I thought I might actually get some action and then Sanji butted in and started treating me like a delicate rose, while he got all the fighting.

I sighed as my words fell on deaf ears seeing as- after you take into account all the damage Sanji did beating up that customer- it wouldn't be long before Zeff came to kick Sanji and throw out he customer. And I'd get pulled into the blame as well seeing as I _should_ have stopped him when he'd thrown the guy's wine in his face. I had been on the Baratie for a few weeks by this point and knew the routine very well.

But I'm going to fast aren't I? Let's take a short trip back to my first work day on the Baratie.

It was a wonderful morning, I had a slight head ache from the wine but I'd had worse. When I arrived in the kitchen Sanji was in dispute with the owner, Zeff, I'd never really met him, or talked to him, though Shanks must said something about me because he kept an eye on me the rest of that day.

I'd caught the words "No way" and "Hell" coming from Sanji, which didn't give me much insight as to the topic of discussion, though I had a feeling that it was about me. I stood in the kitchen awkwardly, "Uh.. Hi."

Sanji stopped yelling and hearts choked the air around him, "Oh Leanah! You're awake!"

"Yeah, people do that in the mornings." I said under my breath. I looked from Sanji to Zeff, "So I start today right? Do I have a uniform or something? Maybe a tutorial that I can do?"

The head chef nodded. "Yes, Sanji here will show you how things are done."

"Oh, yay." I said my voice flat. It's not that I didn't like Sanji, I just didn't enjoy being chocked the hearts that were always around him when we talked.

Sanji- at hearing this- went giddy. More hearts filled the air, _I hate those hearts._ I thought suddenly, _I'm never gonna see any action in this place._

Oh and remember that prickly feeling that I felt the day before? It was still there, only now it was easier to ignore. Speaking of that feeling, when ever Shanks and I bouted back on his ship, I felt that prickly feeling only much much more intense. At first I attributed it to me being psyched out as I almost always did. But now that I was feeling it here, I was having second thoughts.

But enough about my woes, and back to my first day on the Baratie. For a uniform I got a white tie on apron. I liked the fact that it was sensible and allowed me to wear what ever else I wanted, and not some... I don't know... french maid... thing. I was wearing a pair of long black jeans, and a white ruffly V-neck tee shirt. Yes, another ruffly V-neck, which I don't like much, but even with all those clothes I bought way back when (OK fine only about six months ago, but hey, in girl time that's like two years.) my wardrobe choices were limited and well, it was my only clean shirt at the time.

Apparently it was an unfortunate choice if I was going to be working on the Baratie, though everyone else was professional about it, I couldn't keep Sanji from glancing at least once, _maybe_ twice, I can't see him when he's behind me. But at the least Sanji never _said _anything about it or was anything less then gentlemanly.

I'd like to say that no, I did not get harassed on my first day, or my second, or third, or fourth, or even fifth. No nothing to terribly exciting happened at all. That is, until that day, it started like any other.

I'd get up early, _very _early, because hey just because I wasn't training with Shanks doesn't mean I was going to slack off, I trained every day until I heard some one moving inside the Baratie. My concentration got steadily better, I could hold Ha-di on it's path for a longer time, or I could sacrifice that extra time to make it stronger. So really it all depended on the moment. I'd created some other new techniques but, I haven't made names for them yet, and before you say anything, yes I do like naming my attacks.

After I heard the door behind me open I quickly put away my swords and turned around, "Good morning chef Zeff."

And depending on whom was there at the door, the response would be: "Oh Leanah, I made you breakfast!" (Sanji), "We're opening soon, get your uniform on." (Zeff), or in the rare case that the Baratie was already open "Hurry up we need you to wait on tables!" (Patty). Thankfully the only person who ever saw me actually doing Ha-di was Zeff, though I'm starting to wonder if things might have been different if Sanji had.

I was able to make and educated guess that it was Zeff, because it was to late to be Sanji, and to early to be Patsy. He grunted. I grabbed my apron off the railing next to me. "As you can see, I'm getting ready and shall be in the kitchen to be ready when the first customer arrives."

He walked back inside, his wooden leg tapping on the wooden floor as he walked. I sighed, he always found a way to sneak up to me when I was practicing, I could always hear Sanji and Patty before they got to the door, but Zeff...

"Cheese, how can a guy with a wooden leg be so _silent_?" I'd taken to not swearing around customers, and well, now cheese was my all purpose non-swear word. I strapped my kogatana to my hip so it was hidden by my apron, though trying to hide the Amaterasu- which I'd nicknamed Ami- because no matter how much I shift it, it still sticks out. I was going to have to hide it in the kitchen again...

"Heck, I don't think Sanji would care if I _could_ defend myself." I walked into the kitchen and stealthily placed Ami in a space between the door and the wall. Which made it so no one could open it, but no one besides me used that door anyway.

The others were all eating breakfast when I walked in, course I never got to eat with them, because either Sanji would bring me breakfast before hand, or I would just skip breakfast entirely. Today was one of the latter days, well, that is to say I tried to make it of the latter. Sanji, though, had a very different idea. _Someone_ (read: Zeff) had told Sanji that when he didn't force me to eat, I didn't eat until lunch, so he hunted me out that morning and handed me a plate with a variety of healthy breakfast foods on it.

"My Darling, you need to keep up your strength."

I took the plate, "Thanks." I said dryly. He led me to a small table the wait staff frequently used and I sat down, I stared down at the plate of food, then up at the expectant Sanji waiting until I ate it all. I took a bite of it, it was so good I nearly cried. Key word: _nearly_

"So? How is it?" he asked placing a cigarette in his mouth.

"It's very good." I said keeping my face blank.

I was so sure that Sanji would melt into a puddle of hearts, But Zeff told him to stop goofing off and start cooking. The first customers had arrived.

The other waiters and I drew straws to see who would wait which tables. It wasn't a usual practice, more often then not we would actually be assigned which tables to do, but today we got to pick. The restraint was divided into six parts, Upper right, upper middle, upper left, lower right, lower middle, and lower left. And the straws were colored and cut accordingly. Red for upper, blue for lower, long for right, medium for middle, short for left.

That day I drew the short red one. Looking back, I think that the universe foreshadowed what was to come. Because indeed, I got the short end of a blood red stick that day.

The first customers to be seated in my area was a young man and his girl friend. I could tell by the man nervous air and the suspiciously box shaped lump in his pocket that he was going to pop the question. I smiled at them, "What may I get you this _fine_ day?"

The man ran his thin hand threw his short brown hair. "Um.. ahh. A bottle of wine. And ah... maybe... no wait... umm."

"What my boyfriends is trying to say is that we'd like to have the soup." Said his girlfriend as she twirled a strand of her ginger hair between her fingers.

I gave a small curtsy, "Of course, I'll get your order to the chefs as soon as possible."

I trotted back to the kitchen, I looked through the mass of cooks preparing the high class food for the customers, then spotted Sanji. "Sanji~!" I called in a sing song voice.

He was by my side in less the a second, "Yes Leanah?"

"I need two orders of the soup of the day, A fine wine, _and_ perhaps some sort of cake that says "Happy Engagement" or something."

Sanji was then covered in hearts, "Leanah! You don't need som-"

"Not for me you _idiot_!" I hit him on the back of his head. "For a customer, the poor guy's so nervous, I figured he might need some help."

Sanji nodded, the spot where I hit his was knotting up as he did so. "Right." He was off, and back holding a wine bottle. "Here, give them this."

I inspected the bottle then exclaimed, "Sanji! This wine is reserved for a customer!"

The chef shrugged, "What do I care? He's just some marine snob."

I sighed, "Oh well." I took the wine and walked back out to the couple. I smiled, "Here's your wine."

I carefully poured the fine wine into their glasses. They picked up the glasses and each took a sip. "Wow," The woman said, "This is really good."

The man laughed nervously, "Yeah it is." He flagged me closer. "Can I afford this?"

"Of course, consider this wine and any extras to your meal on me, after all you want your girl happy don't you?"

The customer nodded intently and smiled, "Thank you."

"No problem, just make sure she says yes." He stared at me wide eyed, then softened and nodded once more.

"What are you two talking about?" the ginger haired woman asked.

"He was worried about the price of the wine madam."

She frowned, "Is that all?" she looked to him, "Stupid face, I'll help pay if it cost too much."

_Stupid face? That doesn't sound like a name someone would give a loved one..._ I stared walking back to the kitchen when the front door suddenly burst open, everyone who was in the house at that moment turned to stare at the ten men standing at the door. _A bunch of pirates_ I assessed by the guns and swords loosely handing from the belts of them men.

In most of the minds of the waiters there were three types of pirates:

Type one: The type that pays for their meals and don't cause any trouble. (of which there weren't many.)

Type two: The type that caused trouble and got thrown out. (of which there were many)

Type three: The type that had no money to speak of and didn't get any of the Baratie's services. (Sanji's on the other hand...)

Judging by the way they were standing in the door like they were kings, I assumed they were Type twos. They wouldn't be around long, all I had to hope for was that they would pick one of the other five sections and leave me alone. But who was I kidding? I practically _told_ the Powers That Be to make them sit in my section.

At first they just wondered through the sections. Of course then they sat down in my section. _Ugghh... I hate my luck._ I walked over to the men, and through gritted teeth said, "How may I help you?"

One of the men- whom I assumed was the captain- looked at me. He put on what could be best described as the _worst_ flirting smile ever and said in what he thought was probably a seductive voice, "Hows about we get some of _you_?"

I smiled as sweetly as possible, "I'm sorry, that's not on the menu, perhaps you prefer some wine? Maybe ale?"

"No I think I prefer _you_." a different one said.

"Ale it is!" I said as I dashed off for the kitchen. I panted in the sanctuary of the kitchen, after regaining my breath (and some of my dignity) I quickly shouted, "Where's the soup for table 12?"

Some of the chefs exchanged glances, others kept to their cooking, and others shouted at each other. A normal day in the kitchen. Sanji walked up holding two bowls of hot soup. "I believe these are the orders for table 12."

"Thank you Sanji." I took the two bowls of soup and exited back out to the tables. I carefully placed one bowl in front of the man and his girlfriend. "Sorry for the wait."

"Oh it's no trouble." The man's sentence was a rush of words, I sighed inwardly, _It's going to take some great act of courage from him to even __**think**__ about saying the words "Will you marry me?"_

His girlfriend chuckled, "Yeah, this wine is perfect." I on;y now noticed she had some sort of accent. I couldn't tell what kind but it fit her personality well.

I held up my hands and lightly tapped my left ring finger. "If you nee any more food. Or _anything_ else you might need help with. Don't hesitate to-"

"Hey sweet heart! Where's our ale?!"

"_Ass_ssk me." I plastered on a large smile and walked to the table of pirates, "Your _ale_ is on it's way." I let the venom drip from every word. I started to walk away but one of them grabbed me by the arm.

"I don like your tone missy." He yanked me back to the table, "Maybe I should teach you some _manners_." I stared at him, he never saw my hand move, never saw me draw my kogatana. He probably never realized anything had happened until the thin cut on his arm started to bleed. "_Bloody hell!"_ He screeched as he released my arm.

I briskly walked back to the kitchen clutching my kogatana tightly. I breathed in and out through clenched teeth while sheathing my sword. The chefs were all far to busy to notice me, even Sanji. _That was just to darn close._ I thought.

I walked back to where the alcoholic beverages were kept and pulled out two bottles of the cheapest ale we had. I walked back to the pirates and set the bottles on the table. "Here's your ale."

The one that I'd cut eyed me wearily as I retreated to another section of the ship and flagged down another waiter. This waiter wore glasses which covered his blue eyes, he had shaggy blond hair was sorta nerdy. "w.. what do you want?" he asked.

"Switch with me."

"What?"

"Switch. With. Me. I want to trade sections."

"And wait on those pirates? No way. Nuh uh."

"Come on! Please!" I begged.

He bit his thumb nail. "Sorry L, but I'm not switching."

I turned to the other waiters, they all turned from me. "Oh come on guys!" I pleaded to them. I sighed, none of these guys had any back bone.

"Hey Lady!" one of the group called. I sighed and walked solemnly to the table. "This ale is _crap_." he said near slamming the bottle on the table.

I went with the honest answer, "Sorry, I just didn't think you deserved and better."

The captain did not like this comment. "Lovely lady," he hissed standing up, "I'm going to the grand line to get the One Piece, so you'd be wise not to upset me."

"You wouldn't make it passed Reverse Mountain." I spat at him, hit 'im square on the cheek, I was so darn proud.

"You _bitch_." He said back. "I honestly think it's time I taught you a lesso-"

He never got to finish that statement, seeing as his face was suddenly impaled by Sanji's foot. "That's no way to talk to a lady." I looked at him, his eyes were narrowed and he had his signature cigarette hanging from his mouth.

"How dare you?!" another pirate asked standing up and drawing his pistol. Which he didn't hold for long seeing as Sanji quickly disarmed the pirate.

About six others of the pirates attempted to kill or hurt Sanji. The other two slinked off and attempted to hinder Sanji by holding the other man's girlfriend hostage.

Here's a detailed description of the next few events.

The two pirates grabbed the ginger haired woman, and I'll give her this: I DO NOT _EVER_ want to be on her bad side. She kicked one of them and he doubled over in pain. The other was just a tad smarter and stood in a way where she couldn't do to him what she did to his partner. He held his sword to her throat, "One move and the girl dies."

_Sooo original._ I thought as Sanji tensed even more. "Hiding behind a lady! I ought to kill you!"

Sanji started forward but the pirate tightened his grip on the woman. "One more step, an she'll be bleedin' all over the floor." The grin on his face confirmed that what he said was true, Sanji huffed, even I knew I couldn't do anything. "Now that I 'ave your attention, I think I'll 'ake my leave," _Whoo-eee, now this guy._ I thought,_ THIS guy could be a captain capable of going through the Grand Line._ "and," The pirate continued, "I think I might take this_ lovely lady_ with me." He said as he breathed down the woman's neck.

I shivered, _Changed my mind, this guy needs to die a horrible death._ I slipped my fingers around the hilt of my kogatana. But before I could even _blink_ the woman's boyfriend was standing over the suddenly fallen pirate saying, "Stay the hell away from my _girlfriend_!" He punched the pirate once more for good measure.

"Whoo-eee." I whistled, "now _that's _the right kind of guy." I said half to the woman, and half to myself.

The woman threw her arms around her boyfriend's neck. "Thanks." She said. Then releasing him from her hug said, "I couldv'e taken him myself if he hadn't gotten behind my though."

The man laughed nervously, "I don't doubt that.. but... um.. Darling I..." _Ok come one big boy! Now's your shot!_ "I'm glad to see you're OK."

_Not what you should have said! _I screamed in my head, then I got the idea to cough horribly and carefully put in the words "Pop the question _now!_"

He took my cleverly hidden advice and got sown on one knee holding his girlfriend's hand. "I uh.. I know we've been dating for a long time now, and uh..." He pulled the box out of his pocket. "I was wondering, Amy, if you would marry me." he gave a weak smile at his girlfriend.

Amy smiled back down at him, "Oh you stupid idiot, if I didn't love you I wouldn't be here now would I?" She took the box and slipped the ring on her ring finger, then kissed him ferociously. I stared at the couple, a happy smile playing it's way across my face.

"What a happy ending." I sighed

"SANJI, LEANAH?! WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?!"

"Well... Happy ending for some of us." I sighed again as I walked to the kitchen to explain the pirates Sanji walking quietly by my side. I still smiled, it was nice not getting into trouble alone.


	10. Sanji and Zeff, cut from the same cloth

Well... It was nice at first. I mean, I still at least got to get one guy. Course then Sanji stepped in _every_ time a guy harassed me. I never got any action outside of practice at the crack of dawn, and I call that life: _boring_! I never got to do anything except my job! What kind of pirate- er...- _former_ pirate, at the time, does that make me?

I was starting to regret leaving the Red Hair pirates, because I felt like I was a part of a family there, though it didn't feel like home, it felt like I was wanted. Here on the Baratie, I just felt like a woman who needed protection, which I didn't, not that it mattered to Sanji. And truthfully, it doesn't feel like home here either.

I sighed as I picked a piece of fruit out of the bowl as Sanji blubbered on about how much of a jerk the guy was for not treating my like a delicate rose. _Even the most delicate rose has sharp thorns._ I thought.

I was leaving the that day. I couldn't stand Sanji treating me like that any longer. I'd seen enough unruly government officials and evil pirates to last a lifetime. I watched as Zeff stormed down the stairs and stared at Sanji whom was still standing over me blubbering on.

"Uh... Sanji..." I said, my soft as Zeff walked over.

The head chef grabbed Sanji by the collar. "You crap kid! Look what you've done!"

Sanji looked into Zeff's eyes, "Shitty geezer, I was just protecting Leanah!"

"Maybe she doesn't need protecting." Zeff said as he threw Sanji on the ground. "Besides she's got other tables to wait on."

_Very true._ I thought. Yeah... you see I was the only waiter left seeing as the others had all jumped ship sometime in the last week. I was waiting on all the tables with little to no help from anyone.

I stood up and started to walk away, then stopped and turned to listen. "Crappy Geezer!" Sanji yelled, "I'm not a kid any more! So stop treating me like one!"

Zeff stayed silent as he grabbed the customer and threw him out the door. Sanji stormed off and I went after him. Sanji stood by the railing, he threw out the cigarette he had in his mouth, and lit another one.

"Sanji." I said comfortingly.

"Go away."

_Yikes! Zeff must 'a really hit deep this time._ I thought seeing as usually I'd come out here and say "Sanji." then he'd snap back to his happy heart-y self. "Sorry Sanji, but you're not getting off that easily." I walked up next to him, "What's on your mind?"

Sanji drew one hand through his blond hair, "Why doesn't he see me as an adult? I'm not a damn kid any more!"

I looked out on the ocean, "Have you... ever thought he treats you like a kid because you _act_ like one?"

"What?!"

"Well it's true, I mean, you started smoking because you wanted him to see you as an adult, you always tell him your an adult, and for all I know the reason why you wear suits all the time is also because you want him to see you as an adult." I scratched my head. "Sure seems like how a kid would act to me."

Sanji had a thoughtful look on his face, for a moment I thought I'd actually gotten through, then he said. "Oh Leanah you really care about me don't you?" He hugged me as hearts choked the air around us.

"Sanji... crushing... can't... breath." He let go, "Thank you. And that wasn't exactly the message I was trying to get across." I frowned as I realized that Sanji was off in coo-coo land and nothing I said was getting through to him. I smiled at the crazy man standing next to me, "You really are a handful." I gave him a hug, and he_ literally_ melted.

I turned and walked away from the Sanji puddle. _If Sanji won't listen, maybe Zeff will._ I thought, _surely he'll listen._

I now realize that I was such a blatant optimist when it came to others problems, I figured that everyone's problems could be solved by just talking to them. Which, I guess, stemmed from all the problems I had when back when I was still on Shanks's ship by Shanks talking me into/out of doing something.

I quickly found out, that where Sanji was good at not getting my point. Zeff was a expert at ignoring people.

I walked into the kitchen, "Chef Zeff?" I asked stopping just behind him.

"Yes Leanah?" He asked, slowly stirring a pot of soup.

I gulped, "Well, I think you really pushed Sanji too far... Maybe you should go talk to him?"

He grunted and moved to a different section of the kitchen, I followed, "Chef, all he wants is a little recognition, all you'd have to do is tell him well done after a good job." Zeff just went about his business like I wasn't even there anymore.

"Will you just listen for a second?" I asked Zeff as he was taste testing some of the food to be served that day. He just kept his focus on the food and payed me no mind. "Ugh, Why are you so stubborn! I swear you and Sanji are cut from the same lopsided cloth."

Still nothing. I huffed, "You two are just too dang _thick_" I grabbed some plates and washed them to get out some frustration, and for some reason... I just wanted to get as many clean as possible, I had a bad feeling that some of them were going to be broken before the day was out.

Zeff eventually started to head for his room, I stopped him and said, "I tired, and I give up, I'm going to leave to day as I mentioned to you two days ago." I sighed, "I'll go say good bye to Sanji then leave." I turned and untied my white apron, reviling to any chefs that had been watching that I carried my kogatana with me. I pried Ami from the spot between the door and the wall, then went to find Sanji. He had moved from the spot he had previously been at, and I wondered if he had also gone to his room, but a quick inspection of the dinning hall proved other wise.

He was standing at the side of a beautiful woman, of course she was customer, but that didn't stop me from being just a _little_ angry. "Sanji." I beckoned him outside.

"What is it my darling?" Sanji asked as he walked out the doors.

_Oh gosh... what do I say?_ I thought to myself, _I can't really just say "Hey Sanji, I'm sorry this is so short notice but I'm leaving in an hour." Or "Hey Sanji nice knowing you, But I sorta hate your chivalry and that's why I'm leaving."_ I shifted my weight between my legs several different times until I settled for, "Nice day isn't it?" _CHEESE AND CHARKERS!_

"Yeah, It is a nice day."

"That's not... what I meant. You see... I... Ha!" A sort of pain short through my head, only it wasn't painful just a jolt, some images filtered into by brain, several of them were of a horribly mangled Sanji, and to be honest it scared me. It scared me to think that Sanji would throw his _life_ away for this place, I mean yeah he's been here since it's beginnings but that's no reason to throw your life away! I looked up into Sanji's eyes, he looked back quizzically. I poked him the the center of his chest, "Don't go throwing your life away, you hear?"

"I hear." He smiled as he walked back to the house. A smiled played it's merry way across my lips. I went to go grab the food supplies that Zeff had set aside for me two days back. _I'm not going to cry_ I told myself mentally. Yet nothing like that would prepare me for what was going to happen when I left.


	11. Sailing sailing sailing

Because nothing could prepare me for a goat ship. I'm not kidding, it had a goat head on it. Apparently- judging by the fact that they'd been flying a Jolly Roger- they were pirates. The Jolly Roger is what caught them most of my attention, mostly because of the straw hat.

"Straw hat..." I said to myself as I shifted things around in the small boat Zeff had given me. The worst bit was the rather large sack of food, It was supposed to last until I reached the next port town, which was about a month away, and I was under strict instructions not to waste _any_ of it. But enough about the food, I was still stuck on the flag.

Then I got that tingle-y feeling again, I knew it wasn't coming from the Baratie because I'd grown used to that feeling, this one was different, this wasn't from someone protecting something they love, I could just tell that there were people with _huge_ ambitions on that ship. I had to be in awe. The feeling was escalating, now I sorta wish that I'd listened to the conversation that the captain of the pirate ship had been having with the captain of the marine ship.

When I snapped back after admiring the feeling there was cannon fire coming from the marine ship. I stared wide eyed as the captain of the pirate ship _stretched_ to attempt to return fire, only he slipped and the cannon ball tore though _Zeff's room!_ I I didn't think it was possible for my eyes to get any wider, _Well, if I'd wanted to go back before, I defiantly __**don't**__ want to go back now._ I thought, then saw a marine aiming his gun at the pirates, _Oh heck no!_ I drew Ami, "_Ha-di!" _I called out as the familiar energy began to build around my blade.

I'm very proud to say that it didn't hit anything but the Marine's arm, and it didn't slice off his arm either. I couldn't help smiling. Of course the act didn't go unnoticed, I'd in fact attracted the attention of a green haired man on the deck. He shot a look my way.

I tipped an imaginary hat, "Be seeing you." I called out as I let the wind and waves carry my little boat far away from the Baratie. That man's face pricked a point in my memory, but, as always, I couldn't pinpoint where.

About two hours later a song came to my lips, though it didn't help me any seeing as it went something like: "A Pirate I was meant to be, trim the sails and roam the sea." course then I got to a part where I had to rhyme with orange... yeah it didn't help much. I sighed, then took to thinking of other songs. For some reason I started humming various songs that I was sure had to do with time travel and fezzes.

Another two hours later I was singing about running and binary circuits. "And an awful lot of running to do." I sang softly to myself. Being alone was rather boring, though it gave me lots of time to think. I decided about an hour later the kogatana was to long, and nicknamed it Ana. That's right, Ami and Ana. Say it now, I know you're all thinking I'm a nerd.

Eventually I got to a point of boredom where I began to think about odd things like: Are there any Powers That Be? If there are do they have some plan? If they do have a plan is it an _ineffable_ plan? Or just a regular plan? I wonder if it's possible to saunter vaguely downwards? Etc. Etc. until my mind began to slow down, allowing my to drift off into a deep sleep.

Now I want you to think about another month doing something like this _every day_. Yeah, I know, sounds like a dream come true. The only good thing about this time to myself is it seemed to have helped my memory a bit, I started to remember some stuff about myself, like I love to listen to music, and I can sing kinda well, I'm off key a lot, so as long as I'm by myself I'm OK.

There was one day that greatly differed from the pattern.

I hadn't seen many ships pass by, but there was one day where I saw not one, but _two_ pass. The first one almost looked like a large ghost ship. But I could tell there was major fire power on that ship. Thankfully no one on board took notice of my small boat.

Then not to long after another smaller ship came into view, I watched it carefully, there was something not quite right about it. Still I thought it best to warn the person occupying said boat about the large pirate ship that was sailing ahead of them.

"OOOIIII!" I shouted waving an arm over my head, "YOU'RE GOING TO SAIL RIGHT INTO A LARGE PIRATE SHIP, I THINK IT MIGHT BE BEST IF YOU TURN AROUND!"

There was no definite answer from the person on the boat, but a feeling on the back of my neck erupted and I felt very uneasy. I quickly dropped down. "NEVER MIND. I THINK YOU'LL BE GOOD ON YOUR OWN!" I shouted again, the uneasy feeling slowly went away, but the prickly feeling stayed for quite sometime.

I didn't sleep to well that night. But anyway, sometime later:

"This was a triumph." I had started singing. "I'm making a note here: HUGE SUCCESS." I shifted around in the boat careful to make sure I didn't step on the food. "It's hard to overstate my-" I stopped abruptly as I saw something appear on the horizon. "OH MY GOD YES!" I shouted as the unmistakeable shape of an island came into view.

"Finally! After nearly one whole month of being alone!" I _should_ have been on course to a town called Lougetown. But things seldom go as planned.

Little over two hours later I found myself screaming this: "I HATE MY LUCK!" I punched a tree on my left. There wasn't a town anywhere on this island, in fact that island was uninhabited. "What the heck, I followed the exact directions Zeff gave me!" I started pacing back and forth in the small clearing I'd found.

A fox poked it's head out of a near by bush. I stared at it, "What do you want?" I snapped at the fox, then turned on my heel, "Awesome, talking to animals now. What's next? Talking to myself? Wait... Cheese it!" I stomped around some more. After about half an hour of ranting and half cursing at myself I settled down and looked for some place to camp, because I was most definitely _not_ going to try my luck sailing blind.

I chose a slightly larger clearing, it was sunny but just shade enough to be very comfortable. I went back to my boat and got my suitcase, swords, and food. I dug around in the bag of food, I got out a loaf of bread and some cheese, then just for laughs I opened my suitcase and pulled out one of the four bottles of wine I'd rather unsuccessfully attempted to "borrow" only to have Zeff give them to me anyway.

It was a rare-ish type of wine. In my opinion the name was _ridiculous_, I mean I'm not dissing the Tonerre brand of wine, but lets be honest, who names a wine "Éclair"? I stared at my lunch... breakfast... snack... thing. I sighed, _I left because I was tired of Sanji treating me like a defenseless flower... Now I wish I'd never left... being alone is __**boring**__!_ I thought as I sat down and took a bite from my bread. My luck must have hated me, I was running out of food though I didn't doubt I'd find some sort of food in the forest.

I spent about two weeks on this island, that is before I saw a ship heading my way. I was a pirate ship I could tell that much, and as the ship drew closer I found myself taking a sharp inhale of breath. "It's _them_." I said to myself. Just seeing that Jolly Roger lit something in me on fire. Though it could be the fact that it was _them_.

A half-smile came to my face. I moved back to my clearing, I'd assumed they'd find the place seeing as it wasn't hard to find. I grabbed the still mostly full first bottle of Éclair Tonerre, a full smile now fixed on my lips. _I can't wait._ I thought.


	12. Old Friends and an Unwanted Acquaintance

As expected, Someone found the spot fairly quickly. I quickly glanced up at him, then back down at what I was doing. "OK, Assuming that you docked two to four minutes ago and not two hours ago, that would mean that you came straight here and know this island pretty well ya?" I glanced up again. "Course that's not surprising considering."

The man laughed, "So it's you."

I went back to what I had been doing, which was polishing off Ami and Ana. "Yeah, just me." I sheathed both of them and smiled up at my former crew mate. "So where's he?" I asked.

"Drunk." Came the reply.

"Well, that's not surprising either." I shifted, my eyes darting to the space behind him, "You think my being here is only going to make it worse?" I asked standing up, "Because I really don't want to be a bother, or a member of the crew again." I started for my stuff.

"No bother," He said quickly, "In fact I think the captain might be glad to see you."

I sighed, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah I'm sure." He smiled, "I'll go get him now." He went back to Shanks's ship.

I quickly put the wine away. Had he been sober I might have offered him a drink. But If he was drunk like my former crew mate had said... _Then I don't need to help the hangover he'll have in the morning._ I thought.

It didn't take long for Benn, Yasopp and Shanks to arrive. "Heey!" Shanks called waving his hand wildly.

"Hey!" I called back smiling. "How've you been?"

"Great!" He stumbled a little, proof of him being drunk. "you?"

"Well, I've been on this island for two weeks... so I'll go with... I've had better days."

"Two weeks?" Yasopp asked, "How did you last?"

"Blatant optimism, and maybe being insane helped as well." I sighed, "I _was_ supposed to be at Lougetown but I ended up here instead." Benn started smirking. "What?"

"If you had just continued another week you would have made it."

"What?!" I stared wide eyed at the three of them as they began to laugh wildly. "You've got to be kidding me! If I had just continued on my way I wouldn't have been stuck on this _god forsaken island_!?" I wanted to beat my head against a desk of some sort. I leaned back, "What's done is done." I resolved.

"So..." Shanks said, "Since you're here, and have nothing to do... maybe you might consider-"

I cut him off, "No. I stand by what I said before." I quickly thought of something, "though I wouldn't mind a ride to Lougetown."

"Of course, glad to help friends."

I smiled, "I'd ask if we could leave now, but you guys just got here... so..." I scooted my stuff over to the far side of the clearing, as more and more people were appearing. Shanks's crew all got drunk, with the exception of all those who had watch duty the next day.

The night came and went. The next morning Shanks was just a ray of sunshine, "Shut up! I drank to much last night!"

"Well there's a surprise." I said flatly as I sat down. I ran my hand through my hair, "When do you _not_ drink to much?"

"Oh, shut it!"

I shrugged. About an hour went by, Shanks had finally stopped complaining about there being to much sun in his face and all was quiet. I was enjoying this peace until a large shudder encased my body, that feeling settled on the back of my neck. "God damn it!" I said in a horse whisper as I looked in the vague-ish direction that the feeling was coming from. "Someone's coming." It felt familiar, but I couldn't place where I had felt it before.

"How do you know?" I heard one of the men ask.

"It's hard to explain... but I know that someone's coming, and they're _powerful_."

About a minute or so later one of the men who was on watch came running into the clearing. I didn't listen to what he was saying, I was just a tad more occupied by the pictures playing behind my eyes, the most frustrating bit was the fact that I couldn't actually _see_ them. I knew they were there, and I had the faintest feeling that they had something to do with what was happening. Which really only added to my frustration.

The thing that fixed the problem was the person that caused the watch person such distress. I saw that coat, the boots, the hat, then all those images hit me. The Baratie, Don Krieg, those pirates I saw, the green haired one, _Roronoa Zoro_. This man, the greatest swordsman in the world. To be honest, I think my brain shut off after the rush of memories, and I wasn't able to make out most of them, but I do remember one, I knew it was from my past.

"NYAAAHH!" I had screech to an older woman, I think she was my sister. I couldn't make out her face. "NOO! I don't know what I wanted to happen but it wasn't THAT!"

"Leanah! Hey Leanah!" Shanks's voice startled me out of my thoughts.

I looked up at him, "Yeah?"

"Didn't you hear!? Luffy's got a bounty now! We're partying!" He placed a mug of beer in front of me.

"No thanks, I've got my own." I walked over to my suitcase and pulled out one of the bottles of wine. I had a faint smile on my lips, some how I knew Luffy was going to get a bounty. I walked back and was about to open the bottle when I locked eyes with _him_. Hawk-Eyes Mihawk. Another memory. My free hand flew to where Zoro had been stabbed. My breath quickened considerably.

"Leanah? You OK?" This was Yasopp.

My mouth was dry, "uh.. Yeah. I..." I put the wine down, "I just need time to think..."

"Think? But you've been al-"

I hastily cut Shanks off. "About stuff, things, people," Then against every possible warning sensor in my body I blurted, "Zoro." I turned as fast as I could, grabbed my things and walked as quickly as I could. I went to the place where I usually went when I practiced my sword skills. The feeling on the back of my neck was still there, but I was determined to work past it.

I stopped, glanced around, breathed a sigh of relief, and got out my swords. I didn't feel the need to try Ha-di, or Tjesu heru again. I had actually been working on a new technique. I held Ami and Ana in a cross shape, the name for this came to me in a dream. I slashed out the green energy separating from my blades. "Ritter's Cross!"

I half-smiled as the energy left a cross shape in the trunk of a near by tree. "Good." I walked up to the tree and inspected the cut, "Better than ever before." I ran one finger over the cross. I recalled what happened the first time I tried the Ritter's Cross technique. It didn't go well for the tree... _Speaking of... Did I ever clean up that mess?_ I shrugged it off and took another step back, "It still needs more work though..." I aimed my concentration at a different tree and formed the stance again.

After I was perfectly calm and my concentration unshakeable, I slashed. "Ritter's Cross!" The green energy sped away from my blades. A more definite cross shape appearing in the trunk of the tree. I let a small smile of triumph grow on my lips.

"It's good for a self-taught technique, but it's sloppy."


	13. Unwanted Advice and a Silly Promise

"Sweet Heaven-!" I whirled around and came face to face with the person I came here to get away from. I took a few deep breaths, composed myself then said, "While your criticism is appreciated, I think I'll leave the judging of the technique to myself, thank you." Hawk-Eyes just kept staring at me. I felt unnerved under his intense gaze. I turned back to the tree, and suddenly realized the cross was _crooked_! I cursed at myself and him, at myself for thinking It was perfect, and at him for pointing it out.

I sheathed my swords and glanced back at him. He was just leaning casually against a tree. I quickly glance to my left and right, formulating an escape plan in my head. Looking back, I really can't believe how silly I was, thinking I could outrun/out wit the greatest swordsman in the world. Drawing up a mental map of the island, I dashed right, nearly hitting my full speed immediately.

Keeping in line with a route I ran sometimes, I took a sharp left turn soon after. All in all I felt like I was doing fairly well, I added in a few detours through the more rugged parts of the island, that is until I found myself tumbling to the ground and doing several somersaults. I knew I hadn't tripped on a tree roots or anything, so I almost didn't want to open my eyes because I knew who'd be staring back at me. I rasped out one sentence, "Why the hell are you following me?"

"Why are you running?" Came the simple reply.

I sat up keeping my eyes closed, wishing it was a terrible dream. "I asked first."

He just repeated the question, "Why are you running?"

I opened my eyes and looked up, Hawk-Eyes was glaring- or just staring, it's hard to tell- down at me. I gauged where I was by what I saw behind him, a tree that had been cut horizontally and vertically. I sighed, and made a mental note to clean that up.

"Honestly? You're just plain creepy, and I..." Shoot, I need another valid reason other than just 'I saw you almost kill a man.' I quickly glanced left, then came up with a half-lie. "And it really gets sort of awkward around Shanks because I refused to join his crew."

I stood up and began to turn on my heel to leave. "You're a very poor liar."

I turned back. I was ready to ask how he knew when he cut me off before I'd even started.

"Though I must admit it was a rather good one." My eye twitched, though his words implied some sort of interest, his tone of voice did not.

"Excuse me?"

"You don't think I talked to the red haired idiot about you?"

"Hey, Shanks is not- ok yeah he is but how does that imply that I lied?"

"It seemed to me that you were perfectly fine on drinking with him."

I rubbed my arm and glanced left again, "I wasn't going to stay long." I offered.

"Yet you were going to ride with them to Lougetown?"

_Hawt dang can't he leave me alone!?_ "Yes." I readjusted my swords. I didn't need to glance back to see if he was looking at me, I could _feel_ it. I knew it wasn't going to be long before I completely lost my nerve so I spared what little I had left. "OK fine I lied about that second part! Is that what you wanted to hear? I lied, because truthfully I find it calming being around Shanks because he some how always knows what to say, even if he is drunk most of the time."

I sucked in one large breath. _"_The real reason I ran was because I saw... I saw you nearly kill a man named Roronoa Zoro, But the thing is_ I didn't._"

A look that could be easily mistaken for confusion or irritation passed his static features, "What?"

"I. Wasn't. There. I never _saw _you fight this... Roronoa Zoro until now. I left the Baratie awhile ago, I _saw_ them arrive as I left! Therefor, I didn't see you fight Roronoa Zoro." I took a breath, not really paying attention to him, "In fact I think I actually passed your boat as I was leaving. That's why this feeling is familiar, I felt it after I saw Don Krieg's ship pass." I ran a hand through my hair, "It's impossible that I could have seen you fight Zoro, and nearly_ kill_ him. But I did, just now. You came I saw, I ran. That's just the way I deal with things I don't really understand, I run. I don't understand _you_, and I don't understand what I _saw_." _OK now I'm just rambling_. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I think I'd like to have some wine." I started off towards the clearing where Shanks and the rest of them were. Not really caring if the bastard followed me or not.

When I arrived back in the large clearing it became rather obvious to me that they all wanted to know what happened. Partly because they were are looking at me expectantly, but mostly because one of them asked, "Why is there a twig in your hair?"

I reached up to check if there really was a twig in my hair, and came away with what looked to me was half a _branch_. I stung together several curses and threw it behind me. I plopped down in front of where I had set one of my bottles of Éclair Tonerre wine earlier. "I got some unwanted advice."

"And did the advice get that twig in your hair?" I knew it was rhetorical.

"You could say that." I popped open the bottle, "Got a glass?" Shanks handed one to me, I took it and poured a glass of wine. I downed it quickly and poured another, and another, and another, and well _another_. Frankly I didn't care if the alcohol had killed me, I needed something to stop me from thinking, because all I could think about was Luffy and his crew. _Heh, I can't help but think that Sanji's with them now... living his dream of finding the All blue. And there'd be a girl named Nami too... They'd all be that ship I saw at the Baratie, lounging around, except for Zoro, he'd be training..._ "Huuuuuu..." I rubbed my eyes.

"OK, I've been allowing you to drink way over what I think you should, but that's your tenth glass and you don't look the least bit drunk." Shanks grabbed the wine bottle and poured some for himself. After having one glass a soft flush came over Shank's face. "Jesus Leanah! This stuff is some _strong_ wine! Stronger than anything I _ever_ let you drink on the ship!"

"Hm? Oh... yeah, I've only ever been able to drink less than half a glass before..." I was about to drink what was left in my cup but Benn grabbed it from me. "What?"

"Bad for your health."

"Smoking is worse." I snarled. I covered my eyes, right now, this went beyond just wanting to forget my encounter with Hawk-Eyes, I wanted to forget about Luffy as well. I leaned back, "I just don't know..."

"Don't know what?"

"Anything, I don't know anything." I was trying to assure myself that everything I knew about Luffy and his gang- _The Straw Hat Pirates_, I reminded myself. "But I can't know that!" I hissed to myself. "I don't know Luffy, therefore I can't know that his pirate crew is the Straw Hats!"

"Leanah, I think maybe you should rest a bit."

"Yes... Rest... That's all I need." A little sleep would sort out my thought. I got up, and that one motion set off a chain reaction in my body, because I was suddenly feeling the full effects of the ten glasses of wine. I staggered backwards into someone. Before I knew who it was, and before I had a chance to think about what I was going to say I said, "I swear, the next time I meet Hawk-Eyes I'll have beaten Roronoa Zoro in a fight."

"I'll hold you to that." He pushed me off him, I fell into Benn.

"That wasn't very nice." I heard Shanks comment.

"Then maybe you ought to keep your underlings in line."

"I'm... not hish underling..." I slurred. "Just a passenger." I started to push off Benn to walk away but I felt legs melt away, so leaned farther into Benn, "I want some sleep, take meh back to the ship pleash." I fell asleep after I uttered the last syllable.


	14. Yasopp's Lament and Leaving a Family

I slept through the day after that and well into the next, and _still_ woke up with the mother of all hang overs. Actually it felt more like I had a whole family of hang overs. Shanks encouraged me to sleep more, but my muscles were dieing for some sort of movement, even if it hurt mentally.

This time, the Doc didn't shove some hang over cure down my throat, even though I asked for it. He said some thing about not letting me have it because of some sort of health risk because of how much I'd been sleeping. Eventually I was able to force myself out of bed, only to sit in a chair in the dining room until the sun went down.

I watched the waves. I felt like a vampire, except without the urges to drink human blood and I don't sparkle. _Sparkle? _I wondered, _where the hell did that come from?_ I pictured a vampire again, and got two different images, one was of a teenager who looked really _really_ pale with copper hair, the other of a tall brooding man with black spiked hair. I judged the second more vampire like as I looked up towards the moon.

My head was still a little foggy. I _think_ I dreamed something while I was asleep, but I couldn't remember what._ I have a feeling it had to do with people battling each other using creatures of some sort for badges, and something about an island... Rockfort... or something like that_. I thought to myself, a clue to who I was before maybe? Either ways Shanks would be thrilled I was up and remembering something that may or may not have happened before I woke up in his care.

Actually, I was moderately sure everyone else was asleep, except the person in the crow's nest. I hadn't been up there before, so I figured a small adventure was in order. I got about half way up when I rediscovered something about myself. I have a _terrible_ fear of heights.

My legs were shaking so much that I didn't trust them to move, and my arms hurt because I was holding on the the ropes tighter then I probably should. I looked up to the crow's nest, "Uh... Hey!"

The person keeping watch leaned over the side, "Oh, Leanah! What are you doing up here?"

I looked at Yasopp, "Well, I figured I'd never been up here and... uh... there was no one around to talk to..."

"There's plenty of room up here, so why don't you stop hanging around and finish the climb up?"

I glanced sown like an idiot, "Well uh... you see I just rediscovered that I have a rather bad fear of heights."

Yasopp laughed, "A fear of heights? Then why don't you just climb down?"

"Can't do that... too high, legs won't move." I took several deep breaths in and out.

"Well, at least let me help you up then." He reached down, I took his hands and he pulled me up.

"Thanks," I sunk down against the wood, "I hate heights, I hate heights, I hate heights..." I kept repeating that over and over again under my breath.

"Well, look at the bright side, at the very least now we know to keep you away from heights." he laughed.

"Ha. Ha. Ha." I stood up shakily, "I'll get you for that."

Yasopp smiled cockily, "I'd like to see you try."

I punched him in the arm, "Stop it. It's not nice to mock people about their short comings."

He shrugged, "Fine."

I looked up at the sky, "So what do you think?"

"About what?"

"The bounty."

"Well, the boss always said Luffy was going places, I just figured it was a matter of time."

"No, not Luffy, about Usopp being in the bounty picture."

"Well, there's really no way to prove that it was my son."

"But if it was Usopp in the picture, what would you think?"

Yasopp joined me in looking at the sky, "Honestly? I don't know. I don't even know what sort of man he is now. Who knows? Maybe he wanted to be a pirate like me, maybe he just wanted to sail the seas."

"What about his mom?"

Yasopp froze, "His... mother..." I heard him sigh, "I... I don't know... She was totally accepting when I said I wanted to join Shanks, she always knew that I wanted to sail the seas more than be tied down with a family."

I shifted, "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to..." I offered.

"No, no it'll be good to get off my chest." He looked at me, "I told Usopp to look after her... Do you think... That maybe the reason why he left was because...?"

I gulped and finished his sentence, "She died?" I bit my lip, "I... I don't know..." But the answer was crystal clear in my mind, "I can't know."

"Just tell me, do you think she's dead?"

I patted him on the back, "I'm sure she's happy."

"Do you think Usopp is happy too?"

I smiled, "I'm sure he's sailing with Luffy to become a brave warrior of the sea just like you." Yasopp smiled.

"You put a father's soul to ease."

"I try." I smiled knowing every word I spoke was true.

After that we talked about different more uplifting topics until the next watch person came. I was able to get down thanks to Yasopp encouraging me to go very slowly, and also I was sure that he would catch me if I fell. I stayed out the rest of the night, because couldn't sleep, I think the idea of sleeping even more frightened me even more then heights at that point.

The week came and went in the blink of an eye, it didn't even feel like a week. Lougetown came into view, and we were all saying good byes. A few of them must have grown quite attached to me, because I swear I've never seen grown men cry so much. Though who am I to talk? I'd grown attached to them as well, this crew... these were the people I'd spent the most time with since I woke up in this crazy place.

Shanks was the last person I said goodbye to. "Been nice sailing with you Capin'"

"Keep smiling Leanah."

"Wouldn't dream of not." I smiled as he handed me my suitcase and swords. I jumped into a small rowboat and took one last look at the Red Hair pirates. They started lowering the boat, and I thought of something else. "Hey Shanks!"

"What?"

"I promise when next we meet I'll have my memories back!"

"I'll hold you to that." his call was followed by several others, all echoing Shanks.

"Oh! Leanah! I left a present for you in your suitcase!" Shanks gave one last wave which I gladly returned.

"I'll check it out when I get into town!" I smiled, then looked away from the ship and at Lougetown. I cast off from the ship and sailed towards Lougetown. "Onward to new adventures!"


	15. A Terrible Birthday, and a Shout

And boy was Lougetown an adventure, I don't believe I'd ever made an enemy so quickly before. I still find his anger towards me a little petty, I mean not all pirates are evil. Course I'm not saying that their all good either.

I rowed into the dock, and got swarmed by marines. "Woah woah! I haven't done anything wrong!" I said, as they aimed their guns at me.

"If you haven't done anything wrong mind telling us why you just disembarked from the ship of one of the most wanted pirates in the world?" A deep voice said from seemingly nowhere. Then I saw a cloud of smoke materialize into a tall white haired man.

A name came to my mind. _Marine Captain Smoker._ my mind raced, _Carp! They're gonna lock me up if I don't think of something fast!_ "He was a wanted criminal?!" I said with shock in my voice, "I can't believe it! You'll have to forgive me mister marine captain, you see a few months ago I must'a had an accident or something because I can't remember a thing. But if I'd known that he was a wanted pirate!" I started to get myself all wound up, "I would'a taken his head myself!" I punched the air.

Some of the marines were startled at my outburst. Others(read:Captain Smoker) were less impressed, and didn't quite fall for it. He glared at me, I stared back.

He continued to glare at me, I continued to stare back. This went on for a little while longer before Smoker finally told the marines to stand down. I finally got of the boat after Smoker gave me a very _very_ clear warning that if I were to try anything suspicious I'd be locked up faster than you can say "30,000 berries".

The first place I went was an inn, because I was going to need a place to stay. After renting a room for a week and retreating to it, I opened my suitcase and was quite puzzled by the gift Shanks had given me. On top of everything was a black cloth piece. I gently removed it and unfolded it.

I spent the next few minutes deciding on what I would do the next time I saw Shanks, S_hould I hug him? Or murder him? _The black cloth was a bandana, and it had his Jolly Roger on it. I folded that up and picked up yet another black cloth, I unfolded this one.

This one was also a bandana, though this one did not have Shanks's Jolly Roger on it. I tied it around my head and placed the other bandana back in my suitcase. I set out into Lougetown.

About 4 hours later I returned to my room, I had some food and some sword polishing stuff. I spent the rest of the day polishing Ami and Ana.

I spent the rest of that day polishing my swords. Not the most exiting thing ever, but it was a good time consumer.

In fact thinking back, my few days on Lougetown weren't all that ground shattering. There were only two days where anything really important happened one was also the day I met a certain young boy wearing a straw hat. But the other came first.

It was a normal day, I was wondering around town, dodging Tashigi and Smoker, it's harder than it seems, but then again, it's hard to tell when smoke is following you.

I had The Jolly Roger bandana tucked into my belt, checking over my shoulder every so often.

"Hello!" A warm voice greeted me.

I looked at the person who was addressing me. He had nicely tousled blond hair, a well rounded face, and all around very bookish. Though his outfit brought about the idea that he was gayer than a tree full of monkey's on nitrous oxide.

"Hi." I eyed him, he didn't look familiar, but the way he addressed me suggested other wise.

"It's wonderful I found you."

"I don't know who you are..." I said slowly.

The man's face went blank. "You... you mean you don't remember me?" There was a British lilt in his voice. It was... familiar somehow. Maybe I did remember him.

Still I shook my head, "No... I don't, I'm sorry."

"Oh... Oh dear..." He turned slowly, "I'm sorry... I must have the wrong person..." The man slowly walked off pulling something out of his pocket, I felt bad for him. Honestly I felt terrible about not remembering the poor man. I girted my teeth, he was an odd man, a part of me didn't even feel like he was normal.

I almost wanted to scream at him to wait. Maybe he knew who I was. Maybe he knew more about who I was before I woke up all those many months ago on Shanks's ship.

The man turned down a road, and after a moment I pursued. But... he was gone. I looked around, but... he wasn't there.

"Hey. What are you doing lurking around here?" I groaned.

"I'm not lurking Captain Smoker."

"Sure seems like it to me."

I turned on my heel. "Everything I do looks like lurking to you."

The burly Smoke man was dressed more formally today than normal, I suspected that would change over the next few days. His silver smoke hair waving in the soft breeze. "Everything you do is lurking."

I tried my best to keep my composure, "You're just biased because I got off of a pirate ship. I haven't done anything to make you think I'm a law breaker."

He eyed my bandana, "So that's not a Jolly Roger?"

I glanced down at the bandana, "There's no way to prove it is without getting it off my person." We locked gazes, and in that second we both knew what was going to happen next.

I took off, Smoker in hot pursuit. The ocean. I reminded myself, He can't follow me into the ocean.

Hard left, soft right, dodge the shoppers.

My hotel room is closer. I thought, It would be easier to get to my hotel room and switch out my bandanas. With a nod I changed course, hearing Smoker shout behind be to stop. I dug into my pocket, grabbing the vial of sea water I kept on me after Shanks taught me about Devil Fruits. If he tried to smoke me out he'd be in for a surprise.

I barged into the hotel, bounding up the stairs to my room, shutting the door behind me. I quickly traded the styled bandana for the plain black one and hid it, but not before soaking it in sea water, so if Smoker was able to see it he wouldn't be able to get at it.

The door burst open. Smoker looked around the room, I was sitting on my bed, arm extended plain black bandana loosely hanging from my hand. "There you are Captain."

The marine regarded the bandana with interest. "Where did the Jolly Roger go?" He asked.

I shook my head. "There was no Jolly Roger. I just like leading you on."

He glared down at me, "Then why play games?"

"I'm always faster when I'm being chased," I shrugged, "I wanted to get back here faster so..."

"I should arrest you for being a pirate anyway." He pulled out another cigar and lit it.

I simply shrugged again, laying back on the bed. Smoker stormed out, shutting the door behind him.

I sighed in relief. "Thank god." I pulled the other bandana from it's hiding spot. "Shanks... will you ever stop causing me trouble?" I asked it, almost wishing it would answer. I laid there for a long while before pulling myself up, "I need a beer... or wine..." I opened my suitcase and pulled my second to last bottle of Éclair Tonerre wine and popped it open.

"Happy birthday to me." I said softly, taking a drink from the bottle. I turned 19 on that day.

Things didn't really get better or worse from that point on. Things just seemed more boring, until one pirate captain and his crew came to town.

The day started out like normal, wake up, yawn, stretch, get dressed, go outside, and that's where the similarities stopped. Because as soon as I got outside a thin figure rushed past screaming, "EXICUTION PLATFORM!"

It took my brain a moment to actually process that someone could really _be_ that stupid. Then it also click in my mind, that boy had been wearing a straw hat. Not just any straw hat but _the _straw hat. That boy was Monkey D. Luffy.

I attempted to give chase but he had gotten to far ahead. I caught my breath by a shop window. "Damn, I didn't think he'd be able to run that fast." I panted as I glanced into the window. Something caught my eye, it was an old chess set. _I hate chess, _I thought to myself,_ but_ _Thursday would love that chess set._ _Wait, do I even know a Thursday?I must... I feel like I do anyway..._

I walked into the store, giving a passing glance at the street, in case Luffy realized he was going the wrong direction and came back. He didn't. I walked up to the shop keeper. "How much for the chess set?"

The shop keeper looked at me then at the chess set. "You like chess?"

"No... It's for a friend of mine."


	16. The Final Misadventures in Lougetown

After properly storing the chess set I set out to find Luffy. Along the way I ran into Tashigi.

Tashigi obviously has it in for me, and I think it might just be because Smoker told her that I might be a pirate. "You!"

"Sargent Tashigi! Always nice to see you!" I smiled.

"Leanah, I think it's time you payed back your debt." Did I fail to mention that I may or may not have accidentally bent her sword Shigure?

"Really? Is it that time?" I shifted, _damn, if she forces me to work at the marine building I'll never be able to find Luffy._

"Yeah, besides you can help this guy who broke my glasses." She pointed behind her. I leaned to the side so I could see who it was.

I smirked slightly at the sight of the green haired man muttering to himself. "He broke your glasses you say? That doesn't seem very swordsman like."

Tashigi sighed, "Then he tried to tell me that he'd pay me back but he's completely broke!"

"Oh my... first breaking your glasses then trying to weasel out of paying." I tsked.

Tashigi glared at me, "You're not much better." She started walking and I followed behind her, the green haired man behind me.

"I payed!"

"Half the fee."

I grumbled, "half the fee, shmaf the fee. At least _I_ paid some of it."

We walked in silence. I glanced back at the man, He was missing two swords, but the green hair gave away who he was. I fell in step with him, in a hushed voice I said, "You're Roronoa Zoro."

"Why do you care?" He shot me a side glare. I bet he remembered me from the Baratie.

"Come on! A person goes up against Hawk-Eyes and _lives_!? I only me-" I rethought what I was going to say, "Heard about some of the stuff that guy does and he gives me the creeps!" I patted him on the back, "I'll bet you'll be famous in no time."

Zoro turned from my touch and we walked the rest of the way in silence.

After we arrived Tashigi told us we would have had to clean the hall way. It was a large hall way. Zoro and I immediately started complaining. Tashigi stopped us.

"Once you start working for the marines you never have to worry about money issues." She said cheerfully, "There will always be a job here for you."

My shoulders dropped, "Um.. Sargent Major, I don't think Captain Smoker would be all to happy with my sudden employment here." Yes, I was trying to get out of this.

Tashigi rolled her eyes. "I'll inform Smoker you're working to pay off a debt you owe me."

She turned and left the two with a bucket of water and several mops.

Zoro cursed, "Great, this is gonna take the whole damn day."

I sighed, "Now I'll never find him." I grabbed a mop.

"Find who?" Zoro grabbed a mop as well.

We started mopping before I replied. "A man who, if I'm not mistaken, you know rather well. His name is Monkey D. Luffy."

He stopped, "Luffy?"

"Yep, saw his wanted poster. My old captain swore to high heaven that Luffy was going places." I smiled thinking of Shanks, _If only he could see me now!_

"You're a pirate?" He scoffed

"Was." I corrected, "I _was _a pirate, but I didn't exactly fit in on my old crew so I left."

"Why?"

"I didn't want them pulling my weight around. I was an amateur sword user compared to my old captain, and he was missing his left arm." I mopped a section of the floor while Zoro set out on a different section. "All of my techniques are self-taught..."

"So are mine." He said, "And you don't see me complaining."

"Says the swordsman who earned the personal praise of the greatest in the world." _And what did I get? A slap on the wrist._ "Speaking of, you only have one sword. I thought you used three."

He frowned "I do."

"So... what happened to your other two?" I knew exactly what happened. I still remembered what I saw back when I first locked glances with Mihawk.

"They broke." Came the simple, yet angry reply. I had hit a sore spot.

I wanted to change the subject. "That Sword you have there... That's the O Wazamono Wado Ichimonji isn't it?" I didn't know how I knew the name of his sword, but it seemed as familiar to me as knowing Luffy and Usopp were friends.

"Hm?" He glanced down at his sword.

"May I see it?" I propped my mop up against the wall, grabbing Ami, "Just for a second, I swear I'll give it back." Zoro seemed a little hesitant, but after a moment he did the same with his mop and reluctantly handed me his sword.

I knelt down, placing the Wado Ichimonji just above my Amaterasu. The craftsmanship looked the same, despite the different color patterns.

"Hey, That your sword?" He asked, staring at Ami.

"O Wazamono Amaterasu." I answered. "It's the same class as your Wado Ichimonji." As I was handing his sword back to him I got a flash of memories again.

A girl, Sort of like a younger Tashigi, standing, crying about something. A younger Zoro, outraged at her crying._ Kuina._

A promise. _To be the greatest in the world!_

And accident, a funeral. Fiery determination to complete the promise. _I'll get stronger, stronger than she ever was, you hear me? So strong my name reaches up into the Heavens! I __**AM**__ going to be the worlds greatest swordsman!_

"Kuina..." It slipped out, along with pinpricks of tears in my eyes.

"What did you just say?" He snatched his sword back, not quite glaring at me, but just staring.

I wiped away building tears, "Nothing... There was..." I hated making things up on the fly, but there was no way out of this without doing so. "There was a girl... I knew when I was younger. She had a sword just like that one."

Zoro seemed shocked. "You... knew Kuina?"

I nodded, "We weren't close... It's been awhile since I thought of her." I stood up, "It's been... what... 8 years since the accident?" I finished quietly, grabbing my mop and going back to cleaning.

Zoro did the same. "This is her sword. I got it from her father."

"I'm glad. You seem just as ambitious as she was. Earning the personal praise of Hawk-eye Mihawk is no easy task."

He just grunted and went to mopping. We spent a little more time mopping before Zoro had finally had enough.

"To hell with this!" He shouted as he grabbed two more mops, he placed one in his mouth and held the other two like swords. I tried not to laugh. He looked absolutely ridiculous, but still, it was an effective way to get the job done. He cleaned the entire rest of the hallway by himself.

He glanced back at me triumphantly, "Three-mop style worked like a charm." I smiled at him.

He attention was drawn by the marine sword practice outside, I stood there and watched him as he stared out the window. I looked out the window too. Tashigi was leading the younger recruits through sword training. _She looks like an older Kuina..._ I shrugged and leaned on the mop I was holding.

Two marines came by who seemed to have more common sense than Tashigi in being able to recognize Zoro. I watched his stance shift subtly, and a tingling feeling erupted on the back of my neck. It wasn't on par with Hawk-Eyes, but it had potential to be even stronger. Zoro ever so masterfully knocked out the two marines and dropped some money and a hastily written note on their unconscious bodies.. I cocked an eyebrow and followed him out of the building.

"That was some stunt you pulled back there." I said as I caught up to him. "I mean you do realize you may have just compromised the perfect cover right?"

Zoro snorted, "What do you mean?"

"You mean you don't know?!" I laughed, "Oh man you guys really came to the wrong town, you see the captain of this marine base seems to have made it his personal business to capture any pirates in the East Blue before they can get to the Grand Line. You see that's why I'm laying low, I mean I already have one strike on my record with the marines just because they saw me disembark my old captain's ship and-" I stopped because I suddenly became aware that Zoro wasn't listening at all. In fact he'd wondered off into a sword shop.

I ran my hand through my shoulder length hair and sighed, "Well... I guess he'll find out eventually." I shoved my hands in my pockets and sauntered off down the street. After about an hour there was talk about Daddy the Father and some new crack shot having a shooting contest, I blissfully ignored this news. But when I heard about a cooking contest, well... being on the Baratie for as long as I was seemed to have (possible re)awakened a passion for food in me.

I arrived to the contest area about half an hour before it started, which was just enough time to see all the contestants before the contest. Including one blond haired chef whose name rhymes with Manji.

"Leanah?! Oh can it be true?! Leanah is that you?!"

_Oh shoot me!_ I thought as I turned to see Sanji, hearts fluttering all around as per the usual. "Sanji! What a surprise!"

"Oh my darling angel! Is it really possible that you've returned to me?" He said some other romantic gibberish, but I had tuned out by then. It wasn't until someone else called out to him that he finally stopped spouting his romantic nonsense.

When the contest started it was obvious that... oh.. what was her name again? Carmen! That's right... it was obvious that Carmen was confident in her cooking skills, hell she even had to apprentices with her. Yet, if you compared her cooking to Sanji's her cooking seemed to lack... Hm... what's the word Sanji would have used... Passion. Carmen cooked _like_ she had passion, but she didn't really seem to have it.

The contest went on for quite some time and got very heated, the final round was Carmen VS Sanji, which really wasn't all that surprising. Carmen got to work straight away laughing like a man woman while she peeled carrots, but Sanji on the other hand seemed to be taking his time, pouring his heart and soul into every movement and ingredient.

For a cooking event it was really on the edge of your seat action. Somehow though, I just knew Sanji was going to win. And he did, I cheered for him and watched as Carmen swore she would get better. Then disappeared from the crowd before Sanji could find me again.

I went back to my hotel room, I had an odd feeling that something big was going to happen today and I didn't want to be ill prepared. I grabbed my suitcase and swords.

I ran out on to the street and saw a whole bunch of people in capes pass by. "What the hell?"

One of them stopped, "Hey girl. Have you seen a idiot in a straw hat?" The guy sounded like he'd been gargling razor blades and extract of torn vocal cords.

"Depends." I said nonchalantly, "I mean I did know an idiot who _had_ a straw hat at one point. Then there was that one guy a couple islands back who had one, but then again just about every guy on the island had a straw hat sooooo... No I can't actually say I have."

He growled and stomped off.

I smiled triumphantly. I had never felt greater joy in piss some random stranger off before, but I doubted that he wanted to give Luffy something nice.

Quite some time later it had started to rain and I was ambling about town I heard several people scream "PIRATES! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!" I ran in the direction of the screaming people.

Luck must have been on my side that day despite previous encounters, because I arrived just in time to see a weird clown pirate gloating over... wait... was that _Luffy_?

There was some commotion in the middle of the crowd, I couldn't quite see it from where I was but it looked like two people fighting their way to the execution platform through every pirate and marine that got in their way. I was about to go join them when the weird clown had finally finished whatever he was doing he gave Luffy the chance to say one last thing.

Luffy called out four names, three of which I recognized. Then he said, "I'm dead!"

My heart stopped, "LUFFY!" I cried, though something inside me knew he wasn't going to die. I forced myself to look away just before a giant lightning bolt stuck the execution platform. "Woah."

Everyone seemed to share my surprise, except Luffy who most likely thought that being stuck by lightning was a cool. After everyone got over the initial shock the marines called attack along with the other band of pirates. Luffy and his three friends ran off.

I looked at the ensuing chaos around me, "I never knew Luffy could make such a lasting impression on people..." I shrugged and and into the path of some marines who were pursuing Luffy.

"Get out of the way!" One of them yelled.

"Not a chance!" I yelled back as I set my suitcase down and drew Ami and Ana.

"We don't want to hurt civilians!" A different one called.

"I have news for you buck-o! I'm not a civilian! I'm a pirate and I'm goddamn proud to be one!" I ran at them.

I didn't kill them I swear. Killing just isn't my style OK? I pushed the knocked-out marines off the street so they wouldn't get trampled, then continued to the docks, suitcase in hand.

The rain was almost blinding, I knew where I was headed but it felt like I couldn't see three feet in front of me. I bumped into some one, "Oh god, I'm so sorry."

"It's alright." The person I bumped into helped me up.

"It was my fault," I tried to brush off my sleeve, which was more or less plastered to my arm because of the rain, my bandana really wasn't helping either because it kept slipping over my eyes. "This rain is really making it hard for me to see."

"Is it really?" The person asked. "How very interesting..."

I bowed, "Once again, I'm sorry." I squinted through the rain, _Wait...Why am I getting pelted with rain when it doesn't look like he's getting hit with any rain at all?_

"An unidentified element," The man said calmly. "Interesting." I shielded my eyes to try and get a better look at him. "Tell me, What do you want out of life?"

I gulped, _What? What do I want out of life? Seems an odd question. And yet..._ "Adventure, and getting my memories back would be nice too." I answered quickly. The man just laughed and disappeared. _What the fudge? Did he just-? Am I going insane? _I shook off that feeling and braved farther on down the path towards the docks.

I was almost there when suddenly a HUGE gust of wind came out of nowhere and knocked me off my feet. I actually think I blacked out for a moment, but anyway I got up from the pile of rubble I landed in. I hadn't lost any fingers or limbs, I wasn't bleeding so I considered myself good on all counts. I checked my suitcase, it wasn't broken thank god and my bandana was still plastered to my forehead. I looked around, I was all the way at the docks, _awesome! Now all I have to do is fin-_ My thoughts were cut off by the sound of several people coming at me and several miles per hour.

I looked in the direction it was coming from only to see that I was standing in a collision course with Luffy and his friends. "HOLY SHI-" Next thing I know I'm being catapulted on to Luffy's ship.

There was a terrific crashing noise when we all hit the deck. I pushed myself up and took a look at the deck. There was an orange haired woman, _Nami_, who was fuming. _How did I know her name was Nami? Eh what ever._ I looked at everyone else.

I laughed as Zoro and Sanji began beat Luffy up. This got their attention away from Luffy and onto me.

"Leanah!" hearts hearts hearts.

"It's you!" pointing pointing pointing.

"NEW CREWMATE!" smile smile smile.

"Hi." I waved.

"Leanah I just _knew_ fate would bring us back together!" Sanji gently took my hand in his.

"Uh... yeah no." I removed it and held it out to Luffy, "If you didn't hear Sanji over there, my name's Leanah."

"Leanah? That seems like a weird name!"

"Hey, don't judge!" I smiled, "I like the name, My old captain liked the name too."

Sanji stood up straighter, "Wasn't your last pirate captain that tall red haired guy who-" I elbowed him in the stomach.

"Ignore him, he knows not of who he speaks."

Luffy's eyes lit up even more. "Cool you were a pirate before this?"

"Yeah," I stretched my legs, "And uh... I wouldn't mind being one again, really." Luffy wasn't complaining, neither was Sanji. Zoro seemed a bit on the fence about the whole deal. I offered to train with him, he accepted though was till cautious. _Smart guy._ I thought. Usopp didn't seem to be complaining, but Nami seemed to think this was just all to coincidental.

"Wait Luffy! Here you are allowing a complete stranger onto our crew! We don't even know if she's really telling the truth!"

I bit my lip, opened my suitcase and pulled out a fist full of berries, I had a feeling that they might help Nami accept me as a member of the crew. They did.

After awhile we all knew we were nearing the Grand Line, so we deiced to make some vows.

"King of the Pirates!"

"To make a map of the world!"

"Find the all blue!"

"Greatest swordsman in the world."

"Brave warrior of the sea!"

"To find my old memories and make new ones!"

We smashed the barrel. I smiled, _Never gonna be a dull moment now!_


	17. Dining with the Crew & a Far off Memory

I had such a grand time sailing with Luffy; Nami and I got along famously, we talked about money and clothes. "You know, it's funny." I said to her, "I've spent just about the last year surrounded by men... it seems a welcome distraction talking to a woman."

"Aw," She said as we sat in the small kitchen of the Going Merry, "It's all right, if the guys you've been hanging with are anything like these idiots I don't blame you."

I looked at my glass, "You could say that. Luffy does act an awful lot like my last captain." I took a sip from my glass. I looked back up at Nami, I really couldn't help but be jealous over her hair, I mean come on, who in their right mind doesn't want _orange hair_? Then there was her face, mine was so... less cute compared to hers.

Nami shivered, "I don't think I can imagine another guy like Luffy."

I smiled widely, "Oh, you would not even _believe_ how similar they are, I mean I've only known Luffy a few hours and even _I_ can tell that they're similar."

Sanji whipped some plates in front of us, "Lovely maidens I present you your food."

"Thanks Sanji." We looked at the colorful displays of fruit he gave us. I could tell that he'd spent some time cooking this. Because well, the strawberries were cut like roses and hearts. I started eating.

Nami and I talked for about another hour before Luffy barged in a declared it dinner time. This brought Usopp down from the crow's nest and Zoro in from training. We all sat around the table in the kitchen, I looked around, it was certainly a lot smaller than the one on Shanks's ship but I guess that's to be expected seeing as his crew is like four time the size of Luffy's. I sighed, I was sort of missing them, they were... they were like family to me. Family. Home. A sick feeling settled in my chest as I caught my refection in a pan hanging from the wall.

But... I wasn't seeing me. I blinked, I saw a different person staring back at me, and they seemed so familiar. Her voice rang in my head softly, dimly, she was there but just out of reach. I squinted, the woman smiled back at me, her eyes bright. She began speaking.. but I couldn't hear what she was saying, though I knew it was about me.

I shot up from the table.

"Leanah, dear? Are you OK?"

I looked at Sanji, then back to the pot. It was just my face staring back at me now. I nodded stiffly. "Yeah... I'm fine."

Now here's a crucial moment, where only Shanks would've insisted I tell the truth, or just offer me a beer..

Usopp put his pointer finger on the tip of his nose. "My lie detector senses are tingling."

Nami sighed, "Honestly."

Luffy tilted his head in interest. "Leanah, why are you lying?"

Sanji was by my side, "Leanah, darling, are you sure?"

Zoro smirked, "You're a very poor liar."

I stood there, dumbfounded, then quickly regained my composure. It was Zoro's comment that snapped me out of it. I laughed then looked at my rival, "It's funny you say it like that, Zoro. I know someone who said it to me the exact same way. Someone we both know." Zoro regarded the comment with interest as I glanced at Sanji, "Could I get some wine please?"

He was at the sink with a clean glass in the blink of an eye, "Of course, Leanah!"

I sat back down. "I... have had amnesia for the past year... I'm slowly remembering things from my past..."

"Like Kuina..." Zoro said softly.

"Like Kuina." I confirmed, even if I wasn't totally sure if I actually knew her.

"Kuina?" Luffy asked excitedly, looking between the two of us. "Who's that? Did you two know each other? Where is sh-"

Zoro punched our nosy captain, "It doesn't concern you Luffy."

"OOWW!" He whined. "That hurt!" The straw hat wearing bow nursed the the spot on his head where Zoro had hit him.

I stared down at the table as Sanji placed a glass of wine in front of me, I took a drink. "Leanah isn't even my real name... I don't _remember_ my real name."

Nami's brow furrowed, "So how did you get the name Leanah?"

"My old Captain dubbed me Leanah before he introduced me to his crew." I folded my hands on the table. "He... uh... He took good care of me when I was on his ship. Helped me remember more about myself... helped train me in my sword use," I laughed, "I'm still nowhere near his level though."

Nami nodded. "Oh, OK. So you are a swordsman."

"Swordswoman would be more correct." Zoro seemed slightly off-put by this, "I'm not trying to be the best though, I just want to survive, learn, get better, and maybe, _maybe_ stand on par with the Greatest in the world." I looked to Zoro, he gave a simple nod.

Silence.

Soon Sanji went back to cooking, Luffy went back to excitedly mumbling about food. Usopp spoke up next, "So, Leanah." I looked up at him, he really is the image of his father. "What was your last crew like?"

_How much do I say?_ I asked myself, _do I just say "My last captain was an awesome man named Shanks." or not say anything at all?_ I didn't really know how Luffy would react if I went the first route, so I took the second. "He was a really nice guy. Helped me through the beginning portion of my amnesia. He was sort of like... the dad I can't remember." I clasped my hands together, "Then there was the first mate, he a was pretty cool, got on my nerves a lot for point things out to me that I already knew. Then there was the Sharpshooter of the ship, he uh..." _hm... how to go about this?_ "You remind me of him actually."

Usopp's eyes lit up in exactly the same ways Yasopp's did, "Really?"

"Yeah he was always into that whole "Brave warrior of the sea" bit, he wanted to make.." I trailed off. _ Should I say it? Maybe I shouldn't... Yeah... I won't._ "His name famous for being the bravest warrior of the sea."

"Wow! That's so cool!"

"Yeah," I looked down at my hands, "They were pretty cool people." I smiled. Sanji finished cooking and passed out plates literally over filled with food, then he passed out bowls of soup.

Nami and I got the nicest and most organized plates, granted the bread for the soup was cut to look like hearts and the carrots were arranged to say our names. I slowly started eating.

"So Leanah," Luffy said between bites of food, "How did... you and Sanji meet?"

I swallowed my food, "We met about... oh I'd say little over four months ago when my old captain got me a job on the Baratie," I took a bite of food, "Really the rest is sort of obvious seeing how he acts around women." I sighed as Sanji's hearts started to shrink, "I mean... We got along great and all, and there were plenty of good times." I smiled at Sanji. "Nothing better then meals made with love, right?"

The blond haired chef's hearts sprouted back to full size, "That's right!"

I started to take another bite, when Luffy's hand reached over with intent to steal. I grabbed his rubber hand, "Luffy, I swear to god if you try and take my food I will take your hat and not give it back."

Luffy's hand snapped from my grip and went protectively to his hat. "My hat!"

"I know that Luffy." I said as I took another bite. "After all, I wouldn't dream of taking a hat that you so obviously care for." I picked a carrot off my plate hand handed it to Luffy. "I feel sort of the same way with my bandana." I patted my bandana which was still a little wet from all the rain.

"How you get it?" Luffy asked.

"My old captain gave it to me." I smiled again. "He actually gave me two."

"COOL!" Luffy and Usopp shouted.

"Can we see the other one?!" Luffy asked excitedly.

"Sure! Maybe after we fin-" Then I remembered that the other one had Shank's Jolly Roger on it. I quickly changed my answer, "No, I'm sorry I can't let you see it," I saw Luffy's face drop, "Personal reasons."

_The rest of the night passed in rather awkward silence. Well, that's a lie, with Luffy even the silence is loud. But I digress, after diner Nami escorted my to the sleeping area, she got the bed, I got the floor, it was really just that simple. I smiled, It was hard not so smile, I mean these people, this crew... my crew, it was all very nice. After all, I finally felt like I'd found a home._


	18. The Morning After the First Night

The floor was more comfortable than I expected. I almost felt like I was used to sleeping in odd places. Though I felt as though I was missing something. Something... that meant a lot to me. I rubbed my forehead. _What is it? What am I missing?_ But it wasn't only that that was bothering, it also had quite a bit to do with the fact that I felt as though the answer was right in front of me. I got up and walked out side for a bit. It seriously felt like the answer to why things felt so weird.

"What are you doing up?" I looked to my left to see Zoro staring at me with a dumbbell in his hand.

I smiled at the green haired swordsman. "I woke up, and came out side. Is there something weird about that?"

Zoro shrugged, "No."

I stretched and walked over to him, "Mind if I lift some weights?" Zoro shrugged again, I looked at his collection. Some of them were quite large, after a moment of wondering how Zoro could even lift some of these I picked up one of the smaller ones. I couldn't even lift it, "How much does this weigh?" I asked trying to lift it again.

Zoro look up, "About 60 kg."

I did some mental calculations. 60Kg*2.2=132 lb. "What?" I looked down at the weight, it looked so small, and yet it apparently weighed 132 pounds! _Jesus..._ I thought as I traded that weight for an even smaller one. This one was easier to lift, though my brain placed this weight at around 50 lb. I lifted it up a few times.

Zoro stayed quiet while he did his own training. I suddenly missed having Shanks's never ending chattering around. I didn't miss it for long though, because the next person to arrive on deck was Luffy.

"IT'S SO NICE TODAY!" He shouted at the top of his lungs.

After the initial shock wore off I smiled, "Is he always this chipper in the mornings?"

Zoro groaned, "It's actually more toned down today."

I eyed Luffy who was bouncing around the ship like a mad man. "_This_ is toned down?"

"Yep."

I sighed, _Luffy..._ After he got bored of bouncing around the deck he perched himself on the head of the Going Merry. I bit my lip, "Isn't that a little dangerous for Luffy to be doing?"

Zoro didn't even answer me this time. I shrugged and walked to the kitchen.

"Leanah!" Luffy yelled from his perch.

I turned and walked over to him, "Yeah Capin'?"

"Could you go get some food from the kitchen?"

I stared at him in disbelief. "You called me over here to get you food?"

Luffy smiled far wider then I ever thought possible. One thing was sure, Luffy and Shanks both had the same pull over people. I sighed, "I'm not your personal food getter."

"But Leaaaannnnah! Sanji already cut me off from the food!"

I raised an eyebrow, "Just a question, but exactly how many meals do you eat a day?"

Luffy held up five fingers, "At least five."

I blinked, _Jesus, I don't even think I could eat that much in a day!_ I just turned and walked away form Luffy, this time going into the kitchen with out stopping.

"Oh My darling!" Sanji exclaimed as I entered the kitchen.

"Hey Sanji." I said giving a slight wave.

He came over with a plate in his hands. "I made this specially for you~!"

_I took the plate and walked to the table. It was decked out with all my favorites, from strawberries to tangerines... speaking of tangerines, I need to complement Nami on her tangerines outside... How did I know that? I thought as I ate the food. God now I have even __**more**__ unanswered questions._


	19. The Mystery Mountain and a Mystery Whale

I couldn't ponder that out to its full extent, partly because I knew if I did I'd fall into one of what Shanks called my "Over thinking it to much/needs a beer" mode, though it was mostly in part of the fact that we'd some how sailed into the Calm Belt. There was no wind.

I was freaking out, Usopp was freaking out, Nami was freaking out, Luffy was just laughing. I realized that Zoro seemed to be the level headed one when Nami wasn't.

Giant monster nose hair. That's really all that needs to be said about to the Calm Belt. I _really_ want to forget about the Calm Belt.

Then came Reverse Mountain.

We were all in the dinning area, Usopp tending to the steering, Sanji washing what was left from dinner, Nami organizing her maps, Luffy complaining he didn't get enough to eat, Zoro staring at me and me, just sort of, trying not to spontaneously catch on fire under Zoro's stare.

I was still a little miffed at myself for having lied to him about knowing Kuina, that was obviously something that meant a lot to him... and I had taken it and twisted it to cover myself.

All the attention in the room was drawn when Nami pulled out a map. "And now you all know... why we can't just sail in to the Grand Line."

Everyone was quiet, it was another loud silence.

"Well... Now we're heading towards Reverse Mountain whi-"

I tilted my head, Shanks had told me about Reverse Mountain, "That's the mountain where the canals flow up it right?"

A tick mark appeared on Nami's forehead. "I was about to explain that."

"Can someone help me over here?"

"That's impossible." Zoro said curtly, "Water doesn't flow upward, it's against the laws of gravity."

"The map says that's the only way into the Grand line."

"Shut up moss head! If Nami and Leanah say it's possible then it's possible!" Sanji got dangerously close to hitting Zoro.

Zoro seemed unmoved in his stance, "Yeah but in case you don't remember, that map was stolen from Buggy, can we really trust it?"

"Um, guys?"

"My old captain told me some stories about Reverse Mountain, and I imagine Zeff told some stories too." I looked expectantly at the blond haired chef.

He thoughtfully lit another cigarette. "Yeah. He mentioned that most ships sailing for the Grand Line don't even make it past the mountain."

"Guys, a little help please?"

"I wonder why..." The navigator was deep in thought.

"CAN I GET SOME HELP OVER HERE!?" I glanced over to see Usopp struggling to keep the steering in one place.

"Sanij," Nami said, still staring at the map, "Could you help Usopp, please? It's getting hard to think over his shouting."

"Right away, Nami!" Once again, hearts occupied the air around the chef. I watched with interest as he joined Usopp in pushing on the steer, and his large smile vanished.

"Does this current seem unusually strong to anyone else?" Usopp asked, the effort of keeping the steer in place making his face go red.

I pointed at the mountain on the map, "This is a Winter mountain... So..."

It dawned on Nami, "So any ships not on direct course with the canal get slammed into the Red Line and dragged under!" She seemed nervous now, "But... it seems as long as were on this course, as long as nothing happens to the ruttier, we should be fine."

Zoro raised an eyebrow, "Explanation please?"

Nami sighed, "The water does flow up the mountain," she circled Reverse mountain with her finger on the map, then traced the canals. "You see these Canals? Their all from major currents from the four oceans, so their pushing water up the canals, but also, because Reverse Mountain is a winter mountain so the water cools as it reaches it. Anything not directly on the canal current gets sucked under."

More hearts filled the air, "Oh Nami and Leanah! You're both such geniuses!"

Zoro scoffed, "Call me a skeptic but I just don't believe it."

"You're a skeptic." I said, standing up from the table, "We should probably prepare for some bad weather too. A large storm or something right?" I looked to Nami.

"Yeah. It's not going to be easy, but if we try, we should make it safely. We have to go-"

"It's a mystery mountain." Luffy interrupted.

I gently whacked him on the head, "Nami just gave a perfectly logical explanation for why Reverse Mountain does what it does."

Luffy put his hands up protectively over his head, "Hey!"

I rolled my eyes. "We should get ready..."

Nami nodded, "Sanji, go ready the sail, Zoro you stay here and help Usopp until Sanji is done."

"Right away Nami dear!" He swirled on his heel then barked at our captain, "Luffy you help too!"

Luffy rocketed out of the dinning area, followed by Sanji. I sighed, "That leaves me on the crow's nest doesn't it?"

Nami nodded, "Yep. So get to it!"

"Oh boy." I slowly got up from the table. Crow's Nest=height, height=A terrified me. So, by law of Transitive Properties, Crow's Nest=A terrified me. I stared up at the Crow's Nest, Now or never, I told myself.

I set my focus on the wooden siding of the Crow's nest and never looked anywhere else. It helped, a little.

_You're going to fall._ That nasty voice was back. _You're going to fall, then they'll have to see your scars. You don't want them to see your weakness do you?_ "Shut up..." I told it. _No one wants you around, it'll all be just like before. They'll just play along as your friends then drop you as soon as they can._ "That's not true!" I gritted my teeth and hoisted myself into the wooden structure at the top of the ship. The voice went quiet.

I watched the horizon, I saw a black cloud of some kind, but I wasn't sure if it was the storm I was watching for.

It wasn't long before Sanji joined me in the Crow's Nest. He squinted.

"Do you think that's storm clouds?" I asked.

He nodded then turned back to the main part of the ship. "Nami! You and Leanah were right! Major storm clouds ahead!"

Zoro joined us up there, I eyed him, "Shouldn't you be with Usopp?"

"The current has loosened up for a bit. He'll be fine." I nodded as Luffy rocketed up to the Crow's Nest. It was getting a little crowded.

"Wow!" He shouted, one hand holding his hat in place. "The Grand Line! Can you believe it!? We're almost there!" He began hitting Sanji on the back, repeating what he just said almost word for word. I laughed and ever so slowly worked my way out of the Crow's Nest.

Slow and steady, that's how I got down. Zoro eventually got down before I did. He seem didn't care I was going at the speed of a snail. There was just enough time for me to get back to my suitcase, remove my bandana and get on a rain coat before the storm started.

And that's when everything went to hell.

We were prepared, Nami had made sure of that. But just the severity of the storm was a whole lot for poor Merry.

Usopp and Sanji were manning the steer rather well, until it broke. Then it was all up to dumb luck and Luffy.

The boat was on a collision course with the wall of the canal. Luffy launched himself off the railing of Merry. "GUM GUM... BALLOON!" The captain expanded to the size of... well... a human balloon, and pushed Merry back on course.

I held out my hand to him, but Zoro beat me to it. "Luffy!" He shouted, "Grab on!" The rubber man deflated and stretched to grabbed the 'first mate''s hand. I ducked out of the way as he shot towards the deck and found his head stuck in it.

"Wow," I marveled, "The water is _actually_ flowing up! That's _sooooo_ cool!" I was now standing at the railing of the Going Merry, horrors of the Calm Belt and anything before gone from my mind. I watched the water as it splashed up into the air when hitting the mountain pass and boat. We got quite a ways up the mountain before my brain finally kicked in.

I looked at how high we were. "Oh god. Oh god. We're so high up!" My legs were locked and I was gripping onto the railing for dear life. "Oh god oh god oh god ohgodohgodohgod!"

"What's got you all tensed up?" Zoro asked.

"Don't you see how high we are!?" My voice was shrill, "And the water flowing up like this? It's not flippin' natural!"

He raised an eyebrow, "That's what I said."

"COOL!" Luffy shouted, "WE'RE IN THE CLOUDS!" Another few moments went by, "NOW WE'RE ABOVE THEM!"

As we neared the top of the demon mountain when the water splashed up off the walls of the pass it _froze_. It freakin' _froze_! My heart was going a million a second, it was... it was... _This is just like those roller-coasters back home! Why the hell did I ever-! Wait... What the bloody devil is a roller-coaster? _I pondered this as the Going Merry launched itself over the edge of the mountain.

I was snapped out of my thoughts as my feet left the solid wood deck, "HOLY SHIIII-" I was holding on to the rail even tighter than before. I must have blocked some of the drop out of my memory 'cause all I can remember was the initial drop then being at the bottom of the stream.

Luffy went nuts. "THE GRAND LINE!" I was a tad more preoccupied with the giant looming dark vertical... shape thing that came into view.

"Nami! I think I see a mountain a head!" Sanji shouted from the net between the deck and the Crow's Nest.

"Impossible!" Nami shouted back, "After Reverse Mountain there should be nothing but Ocean!"

_That is the second biggest whale I've ever seen._ I stared at it in awe.

I think that might've been the fatal mistake of our group. While we a marveled at the large animal we neglected to stop the ship. So much so that we actually made impact with the beast. It broke off poor Mary's head. That made Luffy go even more crazy then usual. "MY SPECIAL SEAT!" He cried.

Though after that... That's when Luffy did something that I didn't even _think_ he was idiotic enough to do. He punched the whale. IN THE EYE! The whale didn't appreciate it to much. The next few moments... Well...

The whale groaned loudly and...

It... He... ate us. The entire ship. With all of us on it. Except Luffy... He fell off the side while we were being swallowed. I bit my lip, hoping our captain- even if he was and still is and idiot- was OK. I felt a little gross, having been eaten by the whale, but who wouldn't feel icky after having been swallowed whole.

I couldn't believe it, in one day I'd questioned my sanity, gotten carried over 1000 miles up a mountain, and to top off the list, I got eaten by a whale. Not my best day ever.


	20. Inside Laboon and Who is Jennifer?

That whale thing? Only the tip of the ice burg. But that's not important. "What do you think?"

"I thought we got eaten."

"I know. But then how do you explain _that_." Sanji waved a hand at the small island floating in the middle of... _Oh oh! Gross! We're floating in stomach fluid!_

"It could be a dream." Zoro suggested.

"If it's a dream," I said running a hand quickly though my hair. "It's a pretty weird dream that we're all having." Nami nodded her head slowly.

I looked at the... um... water, just as something very large surfaced. It was large and purple... I already felt icky and now there was this... thing.

"Oh no! Nami moaned, "I think that's..."

She and Usopp both ran for cover screaming "NEPTUNIAN SQUID!"

I looked at the ugly thing, "What _is _that?" I slowly placed one of my hands on Ami.

Three harpoons shot out of the monsters body, Zoro, Sanji, and I all readied to attack if needed.

"Looks like we got some company." I said.

"Looks like someone lives on the island," Zoro said with a small smile on his face.

"I just hope they're human."

Nami and Usopp were crying. I shook my head as Usopp stood and a frantically asked, "Should we fire the cannon at the island?"

"Hold on." Sanji said, squinting at the island, "Someone's coming out!"

I squinted at the island as well, _A... Flower?_ I asked myself as I tried to make out what was standing at the door of the small house. _No. A man._

"A flower?" Sanji said.

I punched his lightly in the arm, "No, It's a man you idiot."

"He got that squid like it was nothing!" Usopp shouted.

Zoro shifted slightly, "Yeah, but did he mean to save us or was he just fishing?"

There was a tense moment when nothing was said and we all just stared at the man and he stared back. My mind was trying to tell me something but I couldn't quite dredge anything up. The tense moment built until the man on the island just casually sat down in a chair and pulled out a paper.

"SAY SOMETHING, DAMN YOU!" Sanji shouted.

The old man just sat in the chair calmly and continued reading his paper.

Usopp was clearly hysterical, because he shouted, "You looking for a fight!? We'll take you on, we've got a cannon!"

I glared back at him, "Usopp!"

The old man glanced up from his paper, "Forget it, somebody's going to die."

"Yeah?" Sanji asked. "And who would that be?"

I scoffed, "Probably him."

He shook his paper slightly, "Me."

"LISTEN YOU!" Sanji shouted angrily.

"Don't get all bent up." I said patting Sanji on the shoulder.

Zoro smiled slightly, "Who are you mister?" He asked, "And where the hell are we?"

Sanji turned to me slightly, "He thinks he can make a fool out of me." I pat Sanji reassuringly on the back.

The old man looked up at the Merry. "Isn't it proper etiquette to introduce yourself before you start asking questions?"

Zoro bowed just slightly, "Right, sorry about that." The old man then launched into telling us just about everything in his life from his blood type to his star sign. Zoro began to draw one of his swords shouting, "I'm gonna chop him up!"

I grabbed his sword while Sanji grabbed his shoulders, "Zoro calm down!"

Crocus glared at us, "You want to know where here is?" I grabbed on to the railing, already knowing full where we were. "How dare you invade my personal resort and order me around like a bunch of big shots!"

I bowed, "Sorry sir, we didn't mean to be rude."

Crocus ignored my apology, "Where do you think you are? The belly of a mouse?"

"You mean we really got eaten by that whale?" Usopp asked.

"I don't want to be digested!" Nami half cried.

Crocus pointed to a large metal door one one side of the whale's stomach. "The exit is there."

I grabbed tight on to the railing, as Nami and Usopp finally caught on that the whale's insides were painted. _You know... thinking about it... That paint can not be good for the whale. _

Crocus mused that painting was a hobby of his when the whale started to shake. _Not shake._ My mind corrected, _Poor Laboon is ramming his head into the Red Line._ I glanced at the island and saw it bob is the waves of stomach fluid.

"That isn't an island it's a ship!" Nami cried, "And it's made of metal!'

Then the penny dropped for Usopp, "This isn't water, it's stomach acid! If we stay here to long our ship will dissolve!" Usopp turned to Crocus. "What's happening?"

Crocus had a very serious look on his face. "The whale is ramming the Red Line with his head!"

I closed my eyes and some how zoned out for a moment. I thought I heard someone calling for me. Only... they weren't calling my name.

"Jennifer..." It was very faint. "Jennifer... Listen to me Jennifer."

I shook my head dispelling the voice. _M.. My name is Leanah._ I told myself stubbornly. _I don't know a Jennifer._

The voice was persistent. "Jennifer... Please, dear you must listen. It's important you listen."

I tapped my left hand to my forehead, trying to get rid of the voice, then another entered, "AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" My head snapped up and I saw Luffy falling at us.

**Author's Note**:

Phew. That was hard (Not really though). So I've rewritten Chapters 1-19, this chapter being an entirely new Chapter. I wasn't to subtle about who Jennifer was, was I? *laughs* No matter, I'm just glad I'm done. If you read my story before the rewrites then you'll notice I added the bits about the Nasty Voice and the scars and some Lougetown bits and some bits on Merry.

Anyway, Please, I would love to Hear your thoughts on how I'm doing! So Review if it's no trouble.

Your ever willing author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	21. Out of the Frying Pan

And falling at us he was, with two other people.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH, THIS ISN'T GOOD! WE'RE GOING TO FALL INTO GASTRIC ACID!" One of the two mystery people shouted.

I ran to the railing of the ship, an equally shocked Zoro by my side.

"Luffy?" He asked.

"Zoro?" Our captain seemed very cool headed for falling through a whale. "Is everyone OK?"

I nodded stiffly, "Uh... Yeah..."

Luffy glanced down at ever approaching the acid, "Oh! I'm going TO NEED A HAND HERE!" He shouted just before falling into Laboon's stomach acid.

Usopp leaned over the railing, "Luffy's not alone.. Who d'you suppose those two weirdos are with him?"

"Where'd Crocus go?!" Nami shouted, checking the door Luffy had fallen out of for the old man.

"Who cares?" I said pulling myself on to the railing of the ship.

"We need to save Luffy." Zoro said, joining me.

Sanji did the same, "I'll grab the idiot, you two get weirdo one and weirdo two."

I dropped back down to the deck as Sanji launched himself over into the fluid. Zoro glanced back, "Aren't you going to help?"

"The other two can swim, and they know what they just fell into." I said recalling the cry from earlier, "They'll surface in no time."

The swordsman gave me a thoughtful look, then dropped to the deck as well, "Good point."

Just as I said the two mystery people surfaced quickly, "EEWWW! GET ME OUT OF THIS!" Came a surprisingly girlish yell from the man.

"Usopp, get the rope from the hold." I gestured with my hand, and the man began crying how gross it was being in stomach acid. "And hurry."

The sniper was off in a flash and back in no time, I looked between the railing and the rope, then made a face.

"What?" Nami asked.

I bit my lip, "I... don't think I know how to tie a knot..."

"HOW DO YOU NOT KNOW THAT!?" She shirked. "THAT'S BASIC SAILING SKILLS!"

I flinched, "I wasn't a sailor before my old captain picked me up!"

A tick mark appeared on Zoro's forehead as he snatched the rope from me, "Give it here."

I pouted as he quickly tied a knot to the railing and tossed the rope over. The two mystery people climbed up the rope and Sanji followed behind with Luffy slung over his shoulder.

The chef deposited the Captain on deck and he sprung to life, perching himself where Merry's head used to be. "Who're these two?" He asked staring at the two Mystery People.

Now that I could get a look at them I saw that the man had light brown hair, a crown on his head, a rather... flamboyant green jacket with a clashing orange cravat, matching pants and two nines on his face. The woman had long blue hair kept in a pony tail by a metal piece, and slightly lighter green long jacket with fur- not real fur though- lining the collar, a stripped shirt with dark and light blue stripes that... didn't cover much at all, a belt that looked very pricey, and very _very_ short white shorts.

They backed up until they hit the railing, Sanji, of course, was kneeling by the blue haired woman's side. _Ms. All Sunday?_ My brain was doing that thing again, where it recognized pepole and tried to guess their names. _No... Ms. All Sunday looks different... Um... Ms... Ms. Friday? Thursday? No.. Oh! Ms. Wednesday! _I smiled briefly, not really worrying about how I might have known that. I looked at the man,_ And he's... judging by the nines on his face... Mr. Nine. Bounty hunters..._

I scowled. Zoro seemed to get a similar feeling off of them. "We've spared your lives... for now."

The two began to frantically whisper to each other... though very loudly.

"Mr. Nine these heathens are pirates!"

"That's very obvious Ms. Wednesday." He caught my scowl, "But if we appeal to their humanity maybe they'll understand."

"Are you two parasites still here?" I looked back to see Crocus standing in the door way again. "I won't let you lay a single, solitary, harmful finger on Laboon!"

Luffy looked at Crocus, "Who's the old guy?"

Ms. Wednesday laughed, grabbing a large gun and standing up, "You can't bully us into leaving, old man."

"That's right." Mr. Nine stood up, grabbing an identical large gun, "We're here on a mission, and you're not going to stop us!" He and Ms. Wednesday laughed heartily before he shifted his stance, "We're going to blow this whale a new blow hole, baby!" He raised his gun, "Ready, Ms. Wednesday?"

"Ready, Mr. Nine!" She called mimicking his action. They fired their guns at the whale's stomach lining.

I ran forward, "Ah!"

Crocus understood the danger and ran as face as he could, throwing himself into the line of fire. I looked away, hearing the impact.

"He... He jumped into the line of fire!" Usopp said, "Why?"

"Crocus was protecting the whale.." I shifted, "Even if it meant with his life."

The pair began laughing, "You'll never stop us. We're determined to finished our mission!" They turned away, a fatal mistake if I must say so. Luffy stood up suddenly, and smashed his fists into their heads.

I rolled my eyes and began untying the rope. I motioned for Zoro to help as I looped it around the two hunters. He tied the knot, pulling the rope taut as he did so.

"Why did you hit them?" Nami asked.

"Because I felt like it." He seemed angry, and he was. Luffy definitely cared whenever anyone was ready to give their life for something. Zoro personally carried the two hunters to Crocus's boat home and the rest of the crew, except I, followed.

As soon as Luffy got onto the small home he began climbing the fake tree out of frustration, Usopp grabbed him to try and rein the rubber captain in. I sighed.

"Oh dear... I lost connection there for a moment." The voice from before spoke again.

I squeezed my eyes shut. It wasn't the nasty voice that seemed to be there every moment of weakness. It was a different voice, familiar, yet... not.

"I'm sorry, dear. I must have scared you." I remembered now, this was the voice that called me Jennifer. "Allow me to introduce myself, I am Aziraphale." I bit my lip, tensing up, "Don't panic, I'm not here to harm you, and I'm not like that other voice you've been hearing lately."

I clenched my jaw, glad I hadn't left the ship like the others.

"Ah.. What name are you going by? Leanah, was it? Well, I'm here to help you, you just have to trust me."

I stared down at the now calming down scene on Crocus's home island-boat. Mr. 9 and "Ms. Wednesday" (My brain at the time didn't feel like that was really the blue haired girl's name. I was eventually right) had been taken care of, and from what I could see they were still out cold.

I sighed... Licking my lips.

"Now that I seem to have your attention-"

I cut off Aziraphale, staring down at Crocus, "Hey... What's Laboon's story?"

An eery feeling settled in the whale as even Luffy stopped what he was doing. Crocus

"That was quite rude, you know. Just interrupting me like that." Pause. "Or am I the rude one for just barraging in on your thoughts like this? Oh dear... I do apologize." I wished he would stop, but he continued on, "I'm not really used to this, but Crowley thought this would be more interesting than what we would have normally done in this situation." I wanted to tell him to shut up, But Jesus he was talking so much I couldn't even get a thought out. "In fact, I actually objected to this plan. You were far too weak for what we did, it's not surprising I lost track of you for this long. Then again, I do suppose that even if you had ended up where I had intended it would have been up to your own free will if you had gone with them or not." There was another pause.

The crew was already boarding the ship again, I pouted internally angry at Aziraphale for making me miss Laboon's story. Of course now I remember what his story is. Laboon, whale from the west blue, followed a band of pirates he had bonded with into the Grand Line. Pirates, worried for Laboon's safety left him with Crocus, and promised they would be back in three years... 50 years ago.

We sailed a little ways into the internal caverns in Laboon, on our way out. "This is some canal." Zoro said, "It's amazing he's still alive with a hole like this in his body."

Sanji flicked his burnt out cigarette down on to the deck. "I assume you're responsible for this?" Asking Crocus.

"Just a doctor's playful mind." He answered simply.

"Doctor?" Usopp seemed very surprised.

"Yep, legally certified, I also ran a clinic on the cape once upon a time. And before that I was a ship's doctor."

I rolled my eyes, knowing the inevitable was coming in 3... 2... 1... "Really!?" Luffy asked leaning over the railing of Merry, "You should join our crew then, we're looking for a doctor."

I rubbed my temples, "Luffy..."

"Don't be rediculous," Crocus said as his house boat came to a stop next to a ladder attatched to the metal wall. "I know longer have that kind of energy." He began climbing up the ladder. "Exploring the seas is a young man's burden." He had a point, but for as old as he was, he sure was climbing that ladder pretty fast.

"What kind of doctor hollows out the inside of a whale?"

I shrugged. Nami and I said almost the exact same thing at the same time.

"It's probably a part of the treatment."

"Maybe it's a part of the treatment."

Crocus turned around, having reached the top of the ladder, and said, "The girls are right. With a whale this side it's virtually impossible to treat him from the outside, so I devised a more drastic method." He turned and walked along the metal platform to a turn wheel. "Here's the door to the outside." He briefly pointed to to the large metal door in front of our ship, then turned the wheel.

The door groaned loudly as it opened, and I breathed in a breath of fresh air. Nice, clean, not from the inside of a giant whale, air. We were happy to see the real blue sky.

Out of the frying pan.

**Author's Note:**

Phew. Another Chapter down, and we're that much closer to a major plot point for Dear Leanah, and not to far from revealing the significance of SE. (^^;) The fault is mine that unless you read the first draft of my story (more specifically really read how I described Leanah) You might not get what SE stands for as I haven't done much hinting at it. Still, you're welcome to guess to your hearts content, and who knows, if someone gets it right I might do something special for them. Just to help a little SE stands for two hyphenated words.

Your ever willing author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	22. the First Draw

"THE SKY!" Luffy shouted from his perch, we all gathered around him. I glanced around, everyone was smiling, grateful to be out of Laboon.

Usopp sighed after we had gotten a little ways out of Laboon, "Fifty years... Geeze, those pirates sure know how to test a person' patients."

Sanji lit a new cigarette. "You idiot," He said, giving Usopp a vert pointed look, "Don't you get it? This is the Grand Line, the pirates Laboon knew are dead." He took a drag.

"Sanji's right." Nami said sadly, Back when they sailed the Grand Line was mostly uncharted, a thousand times more dangerous than it is now."

Usopp rushed closer to Merry's head, "Come on guys, why are you being so pessimistic?" Tiny tears formed in Usopp's eyes. "You don't know they're dead! Have some sympathy will ya?" he closed his eyes, "I thought it was touching. Him still believing a promise made by his friends fifty years ago."

"A true bond of friendship..." I said staring off in the distance.

"Yes." Crocus said, "but the lesson here is that reality is crewel. Indeed they are not dead, instead they abandoned their quest."

I felt a pang in my chest, something about that didn't feel right. "What?"

"It's true," The old man said. Crocus had turned his back to us, the part was hard for him to tell, I guessed. "I learned that his cohorts turned tail and left the Grand Line."

Usopp, who had given Crocus his full attention, turned to the crew and Laboon. "I don't believe it!" He shouted, eyes wide, an under lying hurt for Laboon there, "I mean why would someone abandon him like that?!"

I solemnly looked at Laboon as well. "Some promises... Just can't be kept..." I winced slightly at the memory of my drunken promise to beat Zoro.

Nami looked at Crocus, "You said they left the Grand Line, do you know if they made it through the Calm Belt?"

He shook his head, "I can't claim to know exactly what happened to them, but I doubt they'll ever come back here again." He sighed, "Seasons, weather, currents... on the Grand Line these things seem to defy the laws of nature. Common sense is useless here... It's not surprising they turned tail and ran."

A different feeling formed in my stomach, and I just knew Laboon's tale only got worse from here on out.

"So..." Sanji started with a dangerous look on his face. "If I've got this straight, what you're saying is that these pirates cared more about saving they're own asses..." I could almost feel the malice oozing from the chef, "Than keep a promise to a friend."

Promises were important things to the Straw Hats. I gnawed on my lip. They all had some promise to keep... I supposed I did too, technically, but a drunken promise doesn't quite mean as much as... oh say, swearing never to lose while you lay there, almost dead.

That was something I had picked up from Usopp, it was probably the only story he didn't twist to make himself the hero. I had been a fool to say I would beat Zoro.

But enough about that. Back to the story.

Usopp got in on the pirate bashing. "Why would anyone just abandon such a loyal creature?!" He frowned, "I mean just look at him..." I shifted, there was more to the story... I could feel it. "That's cruelty on a grand scale!"

Nami stepped forward, "But if you know all this why havn't you told Laboon? I mean he seems to understand human surprisingly well for whale, and you two can obviously communicate."

I bit my lip harder, "My bet is that he already did..." I looked up at the scars on Laboon's head, not seeing Crocus nod.

"I did. I told him down to the last miserable detail." There was a moment of silence before he continued. "That was the day Laboon started wailing at the Reverse mountain." I glanced at Luffy, he seemed a lot less... jumpy now, almost as if he was thinking about something. "Soon after he began ramming his head into the mountain."

I sighed, crossing my arms. "I bet he thinks that the Red Line is keeping his friends from him."

"That's probably it."

Sanji puffed on his cigarette, "I admire his dedication."

Usopp wiped a dramatic tear away, "He never gave up on 'um."

The old caretaker shook his head, "Laboon refuses to believe me, because if he does he'd have to admit it's over, and that terrifies him more than anything."

"Rightfully so," I frowned, "Endings are... scary things..." I tugged on my bandana, pulling it down more.

Crocus ignored me, "And what's more, he can't get back to his home in the West Blue. So what we have here is a paradox of tragic proportions, Laboon is a lost soul dying to be with his friends, but he won't stop killing himself to get to them."

I rubbed my eyes, trying to get at the tears that weren't quite there. I sniffed, a feeling rising in my chest, of someone I cared for deeply, someone I haven't seen in a long time. I tried my hardest to not cry, though it wasn't very hard. I couldn't seem too. I bit my lip, hard.

Sanij slumped, "tragedy... Still with all the grief those pirates put him through they did the same to you by saddling you with their burden." He took another drag from his cigarette, "I mean, you've done enough for Laboon, what about you?" I almost wanted to punch the chef for being so blunt, but I held back.

"The scars in Laboon's hide are deep, the ones on his heart deeper." Crocus looked up at poor Laboon. "He needs someone to take care of him and tend his wounds. I'm all he's got, for years he's beaten himself up while I patched his wounds. It's a strange friendship, but it works."

"RRRRAAAAAHHHHH!" Suddenly Luffy was shouting a battle cry and running up Laboon. Sanji looked up at him in irritation, "Damn, now what's that idiot up to?"

Zoro sighed angrily, "Ya gotta watch him every damn second."

The chef sighed as well, "We have been watching him and look what happened."

"Actually... we haven't..." I said dryly, all thoughts of tears gone. "It's almost surprising he hasn't done anything sooner."

"He... took our mast..." Usopp said softly.

"Yep. That he did."

"Doesn't he realize we need that to sail?"

"He's in a blind determination state, he just wants to make his point at any cost." I sighed as Luffy impaled our mast into Laboon.

Laboon, naturally didn't react well. He reared up, then rammed his head into the mountain, sending Luffy flying.

"LUFFY!"

"That boy is going to die!" Crocus shouted.

Thanks to Laboon's wide fast movements Merry was now bobbing wildly on waves that hadn't been there before, "Don't worry!" Nami shouted to Crocus, "It'll take a lot more than that to kill Luffy!"

I bit my lip, grabbing the railing with one hand and my hair with the other. Deep down I knew no harm would come to Luffy, he was going places, and I'm sure even if I hadn't had Shanks telling me that every other day I would have known just by traveling with my new captain for this long.

The battle went on a little longer, the entire crew was tense.

"Do you wanna tell us what your plan is before you kill yourself!?" Zoro shouted to our captain, who admittedly looked really beat up after being smashed around by a giant whale.

Laboon payed Zoro no mind as he sped in to deal what might have been the final blow until Luffy called out, "It's a draw."

Everything stopped. Luffy stood up, putting his hat back on. "I'm stronger than I look..." He smiled at Laboon, "But I have a feeling you already knew that." I smirked, I had a feeling I knew where this was going. "I can always tell when someone's inching for a fight." Luffy stood tall, pointing at the giant whale, "If you want a fight, I'll gladly give you one."

"What's he doing?" Usopp asked.

"Hush." I told him, wanting to hear the rest of the speech.

"I bet your shipmates used to spar with you, and you miss it." The rubber boy returned to a much more casual stance. "Well I can rival what ever they threw at ya." He smiled wider, "Tell ya what, after my friends and I have sailed the Grand Line, we'll come back for ya. So you better be ready for a rematch!"

Laboon's eyes began to water. Luffy's promise meant a lot to him. He actually started to cry as he let out a wail of what I guess was agreement.

I chuckled, "Way to go, Captain!"

Zoro shrugged, "I have to admit... that was pretty impressive."

"I knew he had a plan all along!" Usopp declared.

Nami nodded, giving the sharpshooter a skeptical look. "Of course you did. You do realize you do have to fix the mast right?"

Usopp groaned and was about to say something but Luffy shouted over him, "Hey old man! Ya got any paint?! I'm gonna need lots of it! Oh! And a brush too!"

Crocus nodded, disappearing into the- now crumbling- lighthouse. I shook my head then turned to Sanji, "Hey, it's about lunchtime. If it's not to much trouble would you make something?"

"Oh no trouble at all, Leanah dear!" The chef bounced off into the kitchen.

I scratched the top of my head through the bandana. "Nami... could I... borrow a hair tie?" My hair had been getting rather long, and I think I still had whip lash from when we were coming down the mountain.

Quicker than a blink Nami was at my side, a hair tie in the palm of her hand, "I'd love to let you borrow one! It'll just have a 300% interest!"

"How about I buy one!" I suggested.

She sighed, "Fine, I suppose I can spare one... for say... 10,000 berries?"

I sighed, "Fine. Just..." I pat down my pockets, and scrounged up one 5,000 note. "Shit.." I mumbled, that was all I had left. I gave most of my money to Nami when I got on the ship to make her feel better about me just joining like that. I bit my lip, then thought of something, I closed my fist before Nami could see how much money I had. I smiled evilly. "Well, I can always buy one on the next island for about 10 berries, but, since we are crew mates... I'll buy a hair tie off of you for 200."

"Oh come one, Don't be so cheep."

"I a world like this one you've got to be cheep, no matter how much money you have. So I repeat 200."

"9,500." She raised an eyebrow, trying to see where I was going with this.

"250." I crossed my arms, confident my plan would work.

"9,000"

"300."

"8,500."

"300."

Nami narrowed her eyes. "8,200."

"400." I could feel it getting heated.

Usopp and Zoro watched with interest as it got more and more heated. "7,050!"

"1,000!"

A fire lit behind Nami, "6,900!"

A similar fire lit behind me, "1,500!"

"6,400!"

"2,500! Final offer!"

"No! 5,000! **THAT'S** the final offer!"

I smiled, slapping the 5,000 berry note into her hand, "Deal!" I snatched the hair tie from her.

Nami looked at the note in her hand, realization slowly set in. "YOU ONLY HAD 5,000!?"

I chuckled, pulling off my bandana, "Got ya."

"ARUG!" Nami stomped off as Zoro and Usopp applauded me as I put my hair up.

"Good show." Usopp commented.

I bowed, then tied my bandana back around my head. "Thank you. I honestly try."

Zoro smirked, I returned the look. He raised an eyebrow in silent question, I nodded in silent answer. Usopp seemed to understand the question that wasn't asked and the answer that wasn't spoken. "I... I'm going to go get the mast!" He near-shouted before running off, leaving only Zoro and I on the ship.

He started reaching for his bandana, then stopped, "Are we taking this seriously?"

"Is there any other way to take a sword fight?" I asked.

He nodded, pulling his bandana off of his arm, and tying it to his head, "Good point. Any rules?"

I thought for a moment, "Let's not destroy the ship anymore."

He unsheathed the Wado ichimonji and stuck it in his mouth,. "Shounds good to meh."

"Bleh, I can't imagine what that tastes like." I drew my swords getting into a comfortable stance.

"Heh." He slid into a stance as well, "Thish 'll be good practish for my new showreds."

"Right, I almost forgot Zoro of the Three-swords Style only had one sword when I met you."

In a split second we were running at each other. He attacked to my right, I countered with Ana and went for his left with Ami. He blocked me then pushed off, sending me back a few feet. I concentrated and slashed vertically with Ami. "Ha-di!" A more defined green energy separated from my blade, keeping it on track and making sure it didn't ruin the deck.

"What the!?" Zoro dodged to the right, and the wave disappeared.

I smiled, "A little trick I learned, and well as..." I slashed mt blades again, "Ritter's Cross!"

"Gah!" Zoro dodged to the left. I ran at him, attacking full force. "How... Did you do that?" He managed to ask through the effort of keeping me back.

"I.. Told you. It was.. a trick I picked up... My old... captain taught me how." I pushed with all my strength. "Maybe.. one day... I'll teach you."

He managed to smile with the sword in his mouth. "I'd rather.. learn.. myself!" Once again he pushed me back. I saw him shift to a different stance and I just knew what move was coming next. I quickly readied myself. "Tiger. TRAP!" He shot forward and I just barely blocked him.

"Ha!" I had Ami blocking the swords in his hands and Ana blocking the Wado Ichimonji. "That's a.. pretty risky move isn't it?" I stared at the spot on his chest that I just knew Mihawk had stabbed, "It leaves your chest wide open.."

The look he gave me told me he knew this fact. Yet he still used it... I admire him for that. He withdrew his blades. "Are you ready?" He asked.

"Why not?" I smiled, bringing the hilts of my blades together.

"_Never use this technique unless you're really in trouble or practicing, OK?"_

"_Yeah, yeah. I hear ya."_

"_Leanah..."_

"_I understand. Tjesu heru is a last resort only move!"_

"_Good. And don't forget it."_

Zoro brought his swords back, I got into my stance.

"Oni... GIRI!"

"Tjesu.. HERU!"

The duel was brought to a stand still. We were both holding the other back. No way for either of us to win.

Stale mate.

It was a complete and total **draw.**

**Author's Note:**

I know this isn't the chapter title y'all were probably expecting. But this is a very important event concerning later events. And... as the title implies, there will be many more duels between Leanah and Zoro. I'm also not promising all of them will end in draws, but I am promising that their is no way she's fulfilling that promise she made. Until next time...

Your ever willing author,  
>kari910<p> 


	23. Luffy's Promise and Flashbacks

**Special author's note:**

It helps if you listen to the song Mother Sea during the flashback bits. With the first one it's your own choice, but the ones after that I highly recommend it.

Now on with the story!

* * *

><p>We both stepped back. We bowed, Zoro sheathed one and took the Wado Ichimonji from his mouth, "You're good."<p>

"You're better." I sheathed my swords as Zoro slid the white hilted sword into its similarly white sheath.

"Heh. Matter of opinion." It looked like he was about to put his third blade away, but he slashed at me.

"What the hell?!" I dodged, "Zoro!? What the shit!?" He frowned, looking at the sword. I stared at it, and just knew. "A Kitetsu?! You're using a Kitetsu sword?! Are you nuts!? Those things are cursed!"

"Kitetsu the Third..." He glared at the blade, then sheathed it.

I rubbed my forehead, walking away from him, "A Cursed sword? You're crazy..."

"Hey! If you got something to say, say it to my face!"

I turned pointing at him, "Like I have anything to say to a _crazy man_ who willingly uses a _**cursed sword**_!" I hissed, "That _thing_ is going to _kill_ you one day, or at least get you seriously hurt." I grit my teeth, He was insane! He was going to end up dead before he even got a chance to become the greatest in the world.

I left the boat, checking on Luffy's project, which he wouldn't let me see, though with all the black, yellow, and white paint I could guess.

Usopp was having a lot more trouble getting the mast back onto the ship than Luffy had taking it off, but Luffy's super human. I lent what strength I had, Zoro ended up pulling it all the way onto the ship, and by that time Luffy had finished his project.

"There!" He smiled triumphantly, covered in paint splatters as he held an insanely large brush in one of his hands. "It's done!"

I twitched, looking at... his.. the... _that._ I glanced up at our flag, and noted the disparaging gap in artistic ability. "Luffy... didn't actually... make our flag did he?"

Nami shook her head, holding one of her maps in one hand, and a compass in the other. "Usopp ended up drawing our flag in the end."

I nodded.

"Consider this a symbol of my promise to come back and fight with you." He really seemed proud of his... _thing_. "Of course it's a rush paint job." I laughed slightly, "So you'll have to be careful and not hit your head or you'll rub it off. Understand?" Laboon wailed in understanding, Luffy smiled wider. "Good whale!"

You had to admire how complex Luffy's plan was in its simpleness. Then again, he really did believe with all his heart that he would be king of the pirates.

Usopp brought up the extra wood from below deck, then stopped, "Hey where'd they go?"

Nami leaned forward, "Hm? Oh them? I guess they slipped away while we were distracted by Laboon... I wonder who they were."

With a moment to finally relax the crew began doing what they do best.

Well... I wasn't exactly doing what I do best, but ya gotta cut me some slack, I couldn't remember what I do best. I was actually doing what I could to help Usopp. He had a lot to do since he had to fix the steer and the mast.

He slammed the hammer onto the nail. "Yep! This is my life now. Luffy breaks it and I fix it!"

I sighed, he had been complaining like that since we started. I turned slightly, making sure to keep a hand on the new metal plating we were adding around the break, so I could glare at Zoro who was- doing what he does best- sleeping. "Hey sleepy head, wanna help a little?"

"Ehh.." He moaned out.

I turned back to the mast, holding my hand out to Usopp, "Here, let me take over for a bit."

"No, no. It's fine..." He leaned back, shouting at Zoro, "I just wish _some people_ would help out more around the ship!"

He shifted in his sleep.

I shook my head, "I just don't get it."

Usopp and I continued to fix up Merry until and unearthly shriek came from the area near the lighthouse.

Sanji was the first one over, which was surprising because he was carrying four huge plates of food, one in each hand, one on his head and one on his leg. "Is there some problem, dearest Nami? If it's food you're worried about then worry no more!"

Usopp climbed up just ahead of me, "Did somebody say food?

Luffy wondered over, "What's going on?"

I shrugged, dusting myself off.

"No, you idiot!" Nami said, quite obviously distressed. "The compass is broken!" We all leaned in, "The needle just spins, it won't stop!"

I felt like I knew why... Shanks had explained somethings about the Grand Line, It was hard to get at, I think we'd been drinking that night. Actually... I was very sure. "Hm..."

Sanji carefully slid the plate of food on his leg onto the table so he could get a better look. "You're right..."

Luffy stared at it with interest. "Whoa, this is cool."

Crocus turned to us, "It is sadly apparent that none of you have even the slightest knowledge about how things work here." I could hear the hope for us die in his voice. "Did you all come here to die?"

Luffy was completely ignoring him, honing in on the food. "Nice spread."

Sanji pushed the captain away. "It's for everyone."

I crossed my arms, biting my lip, as Crocus continued, "There's nothing wrong with your compass. The Grand Line has little regard for the rules of the sea, common sense is useless here."

"The needle, why does it keep spinning?" Nami asked.

I squinted. "Uhm... My old captain explained this to me... something about... magnetic minerals in the islands on the Grand Line..."

"That is correct. And the winds and currents are unpredictable. As a navigator I'm sure you can appreciate this dilemma."

Nami rightfully seemed distressed, "So if we don't have a way to tell the direction we're going this entire journey is hopeless..." Usopp. Sanji, and I gathered around, this was serious, Luffy, on the other hand, was digging in to the meal Sanji had prepared. She smiled, rubbing the back of her head, "I don't know what to say. We're screwed!"

I sighed, "What a way to give up."

Usopp didn't take her comment as lightly I had, "Hey! You're the navigator! Navigate us outta here!"

"Yum! This is delicious you should come try some!"

Nami turned to us, Would all of you just shut up for five seconds! I'm trying to think here!"

"The nose is the tastiest part!"

Crocus shook his head, "If you have any hope of navigating the Grand Line,"

"A log pose..." It was slowly coming back to me.

"_Shanks... Whaz that thing the navigator has on hish arm?"_

_The red-haired drunk man looked over at me, "That, Leanah, ish a log pose. You need it on the Grand Line."_

"_OK." I took a drink, then pushed the glass away, then frowned "I donn get it, why do you need a special kind of compass for the Grand Line?"_

_He smiled, "I'll explain the rest to you later, I promise."_

"It... stores the magnetic pull of an island doesn't it?"

Crocus nodded, "Yes, exactly."

"Ish it odd looking?" Luffy asked through a mouth-full of food.

"Why yes, it does have a rather odd shape, why?"

His hand stretched up to Crocus, holding sort of a ballish compass, "Shomthing like thish?"

"Exactly, only a fool courting disaster would attempt to travel the Grand Line without one."

Nami nodded. "Understood, excuse me for one second." Nami turned, very calmly, then punched Luffy in the face, "WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME YOU HAD ONE OF THOSE LOG THINGS?!"

Not missing a beat, Luffy sat up, "I found it on the deck, I bet those two weirdos left it behind when they escaped."

"Did they?" She asked dangerously.

"Why'd you hit me?"

"Because."

"Oh, OK."

The navigator walked over and took the log pose from our captain, after a moment of inspecting it she said, "That's funny... there's not a dial face on this."

"You don't need one." Crocus said, "It's a special kind of magnetism that runs through the Grand Line. Complete with its own set of rules that makes it possible to get around."

"Well how kind of it." I said jokingly, causing Nami to glare.

"By measuring the level of magnetism between two islands you can chart a course through the Grand Line. The log pose method is really the only way to get around. As it turns out, Reverse Mountain is a great place to start a journey since it produces seven different levels of magnetism." He seemed like he had explained this to many travelers before. "But it doesn't matter which course you choose, eventually they all pull against each other making one route, and the island at the end of that route..."

"Raftel." I said, crossing my arms. Shanks didn't talk much when I asked about the latter half of the Grand Line. In fact, he didn't talk much about the first crew he was on at all. I knew why, Benn had explained why, the most I could get out of him was a few island names and maybe, if he was _**really**_ drunk, a story.

"The last and most mysterious island on the Grand Line. It's existence was confirmed by Gold Roger himself, the only known person to have traveled the Grand Line in its entirety."

"Raftel..." Nami frowned slightly.

Usopp on the other hand was smiling, "That must be where the One Piece is hidden!"

"That is the most predominate theory. But no one has been able to set foot on Raftel island since..."

Luffy smiled, biting off a piece of bone, "Donn worry, we'll know soon enough." Crocus looked at Luffy, almost as if recognizing him. Luffy leaned back, "Pfft. Well, I'm done, you guys ready to go?"

All of the food was gone. All of it. "I told you that was for all of us!" Sanji shouted.

Usopp stared at the plates, "He... even ate the bones!"

I facepalmed, "Luffy... You idiot."

Nami wasn't listening, she was too busy admiring the log pose. "A log pose! We have to take great care of this, it's the key to finding the greatest treasure of all time!"

Sanji shifted his weight, "You greedy bottomless pit! You ate the meal I made for Nami and Leanah!" Luffy looked over at the chef, "Well I hope you saved room.." He swung his right leg around kicking the captain in the stomach, "For you dessert!"

Luffy was sent flying, causing a rather strong gust of wind. Strong enough to say... shatter the fragile glass on a log pose. Nami's face went blank as she made small squeaking noises.

I stared in horror. "The... Log... pose."

Luffy sat up, moaning, "Oww... why is everyone hitting me today?

Sanji towered over him, "You selfish bastard, never thinking about anyone but yourself." They were blissfully ignorant of what had just happened.

"Sanji." Nami said brightly.

"Yes?" He asked, turning to her with a smile.

"BOTH OF YOU GET OUT OF MY SIGHT BEFORE I WRING YOUR NECKS!" She kicked the two of them into the air and into the sea.

I sighed. "I'll go save Luffy..." I turned, and ran, gaining speed so I could dive easier. I broke the surface of the water, squinting into the murky depths trying to catch a glimpse of Luffy.

"_Hey, Leanah." Shanks said one day as he was taking me through training exercises._

"_Yeah?"_

"_Can you swim?"_

_I was a little confused by the question, "Yeah, I think I can. Why?"_

_He stopped, "Well, you still haven't been able to remember much yet, and I just realized we haven't tested to see if you have a Devil Fruit."_

I swam down searching for our captain, I spotted his hat and tried to swim faster.

"_And that has to do with swimming because..."_

_He looked up at the sky, semi-lost in a memory. "Devil Fruit users can't swim. Amazing abilities, in exchange for their ability to swim."_

"_Do you know a Devil Fruit user?"_

_He smiled, "Lots, they're everywhere on the Grand Line, but there's one..."_

"_Luffy?" I guessed._

_He nodded. "Yeah. If only I had been watching more carefully..."_

_I knew this mood,I had to think quickly, "Hey, could you show me that last move again? I don't think I got it right."_

_Shanks smiled brightly at me, knowing why I had done that. "Of course."_

I looped my arms around the rubber boy, then propelled myself upwards. Sanji swam passed me, stopped and turned. He was holding two people, I gave him a questioning look. He shrugged, we surfaced and Laboon gave us the extra push we needed to get to land.

"Oh good, I'm not dead." Luffy said.

I looked over, Sanji had saved Mr. 9 and Ms. Wednesday, something still didn't feel right about them, I pushed myself up, Sanji offered to help but I told him to go help Ms. Wednesday. I got to my feet completely soaked, "Aw man... This will take forever to dry." I looked down at my nice black button up shirt. "Oh well, if wine stains can come out..."

Mr. 9 began to get to his feet, "Um... Hey, we need a favor."

I pulled Luffy to his feet and we walked over to the table, Luffy perched himself on the table, I stood by the similarly soaking Sanji.

Ms. Wednesday bit her thumb nail then got down on her knees, "We need a ride."

Mr. 9 knelt down next to her, "To Whiskey Peak."

"Whiskey Peak? Huh, that's a funny name."

Usopp was standing behind Luffy, but slightly to the side so it didn't seem like he was standing behind him, "So what is it?"

"That's our home!" Mr. 9 said, almost sounding offended, then quickly added, "Uh.. sir."

Nami was sitting just in front of them, "What about your ship? How are you stranded?"

"Well..." Ms. Wednesday started, "It was destroyed..."

Nami leaned in, "Asking us for a favor is pushing it Mr. 9, especially after you tried to kill the Whale."

Usopp crossed his arms, "What's with the wardrobe? What are you supposed to be?"

"I am a king!" Mr. 9 declared.

The navigator pinched his cheek, pulling it harshly, "You're lying!"

The strange man was about to say something else, but Ms. Wednesday cut in, "We can't say."

"She's right! You have to believe us, our only motive here is getting home. We would tell you everything if we could, but..."

"Mystery is our company's motto."

"You see we have to be mysterious, it's kind of a rule."

"We have faith in your character, can't you give us the same courtesy?"

There were pictures playing in my head again, I gnawed on my lip, I couldn't see them and I doubted I see something that would give me a jolt like last time.

"Please, we're begging you, show some mercy!"

Crocus stepped forward, "Don't do it. These two fools are dishonest to the core, they can't be trusted."

Nami stood up, pointing to the broken log pose on her wrist. "Listen, I should mention our log pose was broken and we don't have another one... So... Still wanna ride with us?"

"WHAT?" Mr. 9 shot up, "YOU BROKE IT!? That was mine! Those aren't cheep you know!"

"You're stuck here too!? How long were you going to make us beg before you told us!?"

Nami turned, "Whoops, I forgot to mention that Crocus gave us his."

I raised an eyebrow, turning to Sanji, "He did?"

The chef shrugged, pulling out a cigarette.

"It's alright, you can ride with us." Everyone stared at Luffy in shock. "You said your home was called Whiskey Peak? We'll go there."

Usopp slammed his hands on the table, "Why? These two are obviously shady characters, why would we take them anywhere?"

"It's fine." Luffy repeated, "Don't sweat the small stuff we'll be alright."

"Choose your route carefully." Crocus said, eyes fixed on Luffy. "Once you leave here you'll be committed to that course."

Luffy looked back at the old man, "That's alright, if we don't like this route, we'll try a different route next time."

Crocus smiled, he saw something in Luffy that must have reminded him of someone else. "I see."

Luffy set his eyes on the ship, "OK, it's time to get going." He jumped off of the table, stretching up, "Now that me and Laboon have an understanding, I can leave with a clear conscience."

Ms. Wednesday stood up, "Now hold on, just who are you?"

"Hm? Me?" He turned to them, victoriously, "I'm the man... Who's gonna be king of the Pirates."

The two shady people shared a look, then chuckled.

I looked at Crocus, "So about how long until our Log pose sets?"

He pulled his log pose out of his pocket, "Right now it's set for a different course, It should be set by sundown."

It was just after noon. "Sanji, I hate to ask... but could you go make us something else?"

He took a drag on his cigarette. "No problem, especially since Luffy inhaled what we were supposed to have." The chef made his way back to the ship, Mr. 9 and Ms. Wednesday separated from us to plot what ever they were plotting, Usopp went back to fixing Merry, wisely keeping what ever thoughts he had about Luffy's captaining to himself.

After lunch, I walked over to Crocus, hands in my pockets, "Hey Crocus... Can I ask you a question?"

The lighthouse keeper looked at me, "Ask."

"The... crew you sailed with... when you went to find out what happened to Laboon's friends... Who did you sail with?"

The man just smiled, "Just some passing pirates."

I bit my lip, _But... Captain talked about getting someone around this area on the ship..._ I shifted, _Then again... he was drunk..._ "Oh... I mean, I know it must have been pirates, not many ships pass through here I would imagine..."

"You would be correct."

I sucked in a breath, "Well.. I was hoping you would just... I donno..." I shifted, crossing my arms. "Confirm... a theory."

"I sailed with a great man." He looked off toward the ship.

I knew that was the most I was going to get out of him. "... I do have another question." Crocus looked back at me, "About... oh... two... three weeks ago a ship would have come through here... Um... He.. would've had red hair"

"Ah, so you're the young woman he spoke of."

"So he did come through here?!" I was smiling now.

"He did. He left something for you as well." Crocus turned and walked into the lighthouse, I followed.

The inside of the lighthouse was doing much better than the outside. It was truly amazing considering the beating the outside had taken only hours ago. The interior was very sparse, only a few lights, it obviously hadn't been truly lived in for quite sometime. Understandable, he had probably been living in the house on that island-boat he was using to care for Laboon. He shifted through a seemingly resent stack of things. "You are Leanah, correct?"

"Yeah." He dropped a parcel in my hands. I glanced down at paper on the parcel.

To: Leanah

From: Shanks.

I tore it off. Underneath the paper was a letter and a box. It was a very simple letter.

I forgot to give you this.

I know you'll get it.

You're too adventurous to just sit around in a town for the rest of your life.

Until we meet again.

"Bastard." I sighed. A memory from before we parted ways rising to the surface again.

"_Did you remember everything?" Shanks asked for the millionth time._

_I made a face at him, "Yes, I remembered everything, Jesus, when did you become my dad?" I turned to my suitcase carefully shutting it._

_He smiled. "I just wanna make sure you have everything. Wouldn't want to leave anything on the ship, now would you?"_

"_Shut up. You make it sound like I'm leaving home." I felt like I was leaving home. A home. I cared about this ship, and these people. They were... like family._

"_You are, in a way. Lots of the crew think you're family."_

_I felt like I was punching myself. "Please... stop... stop talking... Yer gonna make me cry." I snapped the latches shut and turned to Shanks. "I still have to say good bye to everyone."_

"_Make it good."_

"_Of course I will. I don't know if I'll see you again."_

_He smiled wider, "If?__**If**__ you'll see us again?" Hr hugged me next to him in a death grip, "How could you say that. Of course we'll see each other again!" Shanks pushed me out the door, "Now __**go**__. You have a lot to do before we reach Lougetown."_

_I stumbled out, turned and said, "Right. When." I ran down the hall of the ship, as much as it hurt. It was time to say good-bye._

I started crying. "You freaking bastard. Turns out you're the one who forgot something." I laughed, pocketing the note and slipping the box under my shirt where it couldn't be seen.

"Are you alright?" Crocus asked as I wiped the tears away.

"Yeah.. yeah.. I'm just gonna kick his ass the next time I see him."

I left the lighthouse, got on the ship, and retreated to the girl's room. I put the box in my suitcase, vowing I would open it later. After all, by that time it was almost sundown.

I stood on deck, next to an, amazingly, still sleeping Zoro. "Well, you should be good to go. The log pose has had plenty of time to store the route." Crocus was talking to Nami who still hadn't gotten on the ship yet. "The needle should be pointing in the same direction as the map."

Nami smiled, "Uhn. It's pointing directly to Whiskey Peak." She quickly came aboard Merry.

Luffy leaned over the railing, shouting to Crocus, "See ya, pops! Thanks again for the log pose! Take care!"

Crocus shouted back, "Have a safe trip, my boy!"

The captain held his hat in place and turned to the giant whale, "I'm off, Laboon, be ready to fight when I get back." Laboon let out a wail of agreement. "Alright, next stop! Whiskey Peak!" He turned to us, "Ready gang? Let's set sail!"

Usopp and I whooped and cheered as Sanji raised the anchor. Laboon let out one last wail for us. I assume it was a good-bye wail.

I smiled, We were off again! Another adventure. The second of many. But that didn't matter then, what mattered was the thrill of meeting new people and the wonders of the mysterious Grand Line.

And, as always, none of us were truly prepared for what awaited us on the Grand Line. None of us could have guessed the very turbulent first full day of sailing that was coming. But, unpredictable is the Grand Line's motto.

**Author's note:**

OK... This chapter is about 10 pages long... That's a lot. Plus this chapter was mostly filler or explanation that most of you already know. All that's really new are the flashbacks and the mysterious box Shanks left for her.

Anyway, I have so much planned in this story, I've got everything up to Water 7 planned out and actually some parts of the two year time skip as well. There's one character I'm really looking forward to y'all meeting. She's a real piece of work, and I think you'll all hate her.

Your ever willing author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	24. Zoro, the Incredible Sleeping Man

We sailed. And for a while it was warm, sunny, with calm winds. Perfect sailing weather.

_Then why the hell did I get all bundled up?_ I asked myself internally. I had on my thick long brown coat, and was roasting, but something in me wouldn't allow me to take it off.

Nami looked at me like I was crazy, "Aren't you hot in that?"

I shrugged, "Eh, You can never be warm enough."

Another hour passed and I found myself digging the shovels out from the hold.

"Now shovels? Are you OK, Leanah?"

I nodded, "Yep. Perfectly fine. I just... I have a feeling we'll need them..."

Nami crossed her arms, "Need them? Look at how nice it is." She whirled around, admiring the weather. "It's perfect out today, how could we possibly need the-"

A snow flake fell from the sky. And suddenly, the once warm weather felt like a walk-in freezer.

"My old captain told me the weather on the Grand Line is unpredictable, we need to be ready for anything.." I said softly as Nami stomped off to get her coat.

I tightened my bandana around my head, I didn't like the feeling I was getting. Something was going to go wrong... and soon. I walked over to my sleeping rival and kicked his leg, "Wake up."

He remained unresponsive.

I knelt down, "Wake up, Zoro. It's starting to snow."

Still unresponsive.

"WAKE UP, IDIOT! YER GONNA FREEZE."

He simply shifted.

If I had been more spiteful I would have taken his swords. But I didn't want to touch Kitetsu the Third, and his attachment to the Wado Ichimonji was so strong I felt like I would spontaneously combust if I stole it.

Sanji walked by, holding a warm drink out to me, "It's useless, once he's sleeping I bet he won't wake up ."

I sighed, taking the drink from Sanji. "Well... It was worth a shot..." We walked back to the kitchen, Mr. 9 and Ms. Wednesday huddled closer together, I downed the drink, ignoring the burning in my throat. "Sanji, what happened after I left the Baratie?"

The chef puffed on his cigarette. "Well, I didn't realize you'd left until Zeff told me to serve this dick marine. But after that, Luffy showed up, he raised hell around the restaurant. Then Ghin showed up... After he left Don Krieg arrived at had the nerve to try and take over." Sanji fell quiet, a dark look on his face.

I think I knew what came next. "What about you? Why did you leave?"

He smiled, "It was the old man." Sanji began washing out a pot and I joined in, washing out my cup and other things, "He told me I should go."

"By telling you to get the hell out?"

He nodded, "Sounds about right."

I chuckled, "Zeff always had his own way of getting things across."

The door slammed open, "IT'S A BIZZARD!" Usopp shouted.

I glanced out the window. "That's not a blizzard." Sure it was snowing harder at this time, but it wasn't a blizzard. "It's just a light snow." The two mystery people kept laughing quietly at their own thing.

Sanji looked out the window as well, "Yeah, I've seen storms much worse than that."

Usopp quickly left again, and returned in no time flat in a blanket. I sighed, "We're all getting into warmer clothing, but Luffy's probably too much of an idiot to notice the cold, and Zoro's asleep." I put the clean dishes away. "I feel a little bad about Zoro out there without a coat or something."

"Why do you care?" Sanji asked.

"Why?" I froze for a second, _He could die in the snow without something to warm him up... If he died then... His Promise... Kuina..._ I turned, smiling, "We've both got promises to keep, it would be unfair if the weather killed him before I'm able to."

I didn't realize how creepy I must've looked. It makes sense now why Usopp and Mr. 9 were staring at me in horror. I turned again, and walked out onto the deck. It was _very_ cold, but it didn't bother me. I'm used to the cold, and love it actually. But this cold was unnatural.

I grabbed some blankets from the hold, dusted Zoro off, and draped one over him. _At least now the snow won't choke him._ I thought. The snow started falling harder now. I retreated back into the kitchen. "OK.. _Now_, it's a blizzard." I rubbed my arms for warmth then tossed the other two blankets at Mr. 9 and Ms. Wednesday. "Here. Use these." I went back to cleaning dishes.

Nami burst in. "Why is it so cold!?" She moved over to the window, "You could build a freaking snowman with all the snow on our deck!"

"Luffy is."

"Really?" Usopp was outside in a flash, joining our captain in making snow people.

"Sanji, get out there a shovel some snow."

"Yes, Nami dear!" Sanji grabbed the shovel I had gotten from the hold earlier and merrily went to shove the snow off of the deck.

Nami brooded, glaring out the window. "Can somebody please tell me why it's snowing? It was hot and sunny just a few minutes ago."

"Crocus did say that the weather was unpredictable." I supplied, rubbing my arms, "Even my old Captain told me about the unpredictability of the Grand Line."

I put the clean dishes away, sounds of shouting coming from outside told me that Luffy and Usopp had gotten into a snow fight. "How they can be so freakin energetic in the freezing cold is beyond me."

"How Zoro can _sleep_ in it is beyond me." I said turning to her. "I mean, Luffy I can understand. He's inhuman. Usopp... Eh, he spent most of his life running from people who were chasing him away, so of course he's build up some resistance to the elements. But Zoro..."

"He's crazy." Nami shrugged, I nodded in agreement.

"Nami!" Sanji shouted from outside, "Shall I shovel some more for you?"

"Yeah. Just keep going until it;s gone. You're doin' good."

"You really shouldn't lead him on like that..."

"Thank you! My pleasure!" He shouted back.

Mr. 9 spoke up, "Excuse me, doesn't this ship have a heater? This environment is inhumane."

"I'm cold." Ms. Wednesday complained.

"SHUT YOUR MOUTHS!" Nami shouted, "YOU'RE NOT GUESTS HERE! YOU WANNA WARM UP? GO SHOVEL SNOW OR SOMETHING!"

I glanced up at the sky. "Um... Nami..."

"WHAT!?"

I pointed up at a storm cloud as it let out a clap of thunder and spark of lightning.

"Lightening? First snow now lightning? What's going on here?" She seemed in awe, "I've never seen anything like it... one minute it's a cloudless sky...the next it's a blizzard... It's like the normal rules of nature don't apply..." She turned away from the window, deep in thought. "Just like Crocus warned us.."

Ms. Wednesday sat up straighter, "So what do you think?" She asked, "Ready to turn back yet?" I almost wanted to snap at her.

"You and your friends have no idea how to survive the Grand Line." Mr. 9 cut in.

"I noticed you haven't steered for awhile..." Ms. Wednesday smiled almost evilly. "Is that wise?"

My heart jumped, _Crap! She's right!_

Nami didn't seem as distressed, "Wh- I know our heading, I just checked it a while ago..." She walked outside to check the log pose, and screamed. I didn't hear what the other crew members said, but I knew what was coming, I dashed outside. "I only took my eyes off of the log pose for a second..." Nami said, "I thought the waves were calm..."

I didn't wait to hear what retort Mr. 9 and Ms. Wednesday had. There were bigger problems. I walked down the stairs, "OK, if we wanna get through this it's gonna take a lot of work."

"Right!" Sanji said from the upper deck.

I nodded, and stood, ready to do what ever Nami shouted at us to do.

She had all of us at stations, doing our best to get the ship back on course, even the two agents were working.

"Hey wait!" Usopp said suddenly as the clouds cleared away. "It looks like the wind's changed!"

Nami looked over at him, "Huh?"

The clouds and snow gave way to warm breezes and sunshine, if we weren't in a panic it would have been nice to admire it.

"The first spring gale!" Mr. 9 said, getting warm.

Nami shouted at them to continue working. I over to the railing, "Usopp help me get the sails!"

"Okay!" He ran over and we both worked to get the sails in position. The blanket I had place over swordsman Sleeping Beauty flew off. I grabbed it before it could fly off of the ship. Usopp shouted at Zoro, "Hey wake up snow man! We're in a crisis!"

"Yeeeah." Came his still sleeping reply.

I groaned angrily and tossed the blanket below deck. We were running all over the ship, following the navigator's every order.

Luffy naturally got distracted. "Hey! I think I just saw a dolphin jump, let's go follow it!"

Nami, who was already having a bad day and didn't want to deal with Luffy shouted, "YOU KEEP QUIET!"

"N- Nami! High waves and an Ice burg at 10 o'clock!" Usopp shouted, "This isn't good!"

"A fog 's rolling in!" Sanji stated the obvious.

I felt bad for Nami, she must have been losing her wits. "This is insane!" She screamed.

"This is the Grand Line!" I shouted back, then turned to Sanji pointing to the steer, "Sanji! Get in there and see if you can't change our course!"

"On it!" he ran at full speed and pulled his hardest. Nami joined him when we were at make-or-break distance. I ran over, stopping briefly in front of Zoro, "WAKE UP, YOU ASS!" I shouted, kicking him, then booking it over to help them.

I pushed with all my might, _This is it! We either make it with a scratch or die!_

The ship shook from the impact. Nami rushed out onto the deck, Luffy met her, "Nami! Water's pouring in from the bottom of the Merry!"

"Well fix it!"

Usopp ran below deck, "Got it!"

More fretting and suddenly the wind picked up. I climbed up to the Crow's Nest, working through my fear of heights. "Nami! Storm clouds ahead! It's gonna be big!" I screamed down to the deck.

"We gotta hurry!" Nami shouted.

"Big time!" Luffy confirmed.

"PULL IN THE SAILS! WE'RE GONNA OVER TURN!" I did the best I could with my fear nagging at me. Climbing down at more of a falling speed than climbing.

Sanji brought out the pre-prepared food, "Everybody needs to eat to keep their strength up." I hobbled over. "Leanah, what's wrong?" He asked, concerned.

"High... I'm not good with heights." I reached out and grabbed one of the rice balls.

He looked miffed as he pushed Luffy away from the food "Damn! If Zoro had bothered to wake up you wouldn't have needed to valiantly battle your fear for the sake of our safety."

I smiled taking a bite, "It's fine. I'll do anything if it's for the good of the crew." I didn't stick around, there was a lot more to do. Nami pulled on a rope, trying to get the sail up, everyone on the boat could hear the begin to tear.

"Aw crap!" Usopp said, flicking his goggles on, "The sail 's gonna tear!"

Nami snapped at him, "Don't worry about that! Go fix the leak!"

Ms. Wednesday checked the hatch, "There's another part of the ship damaged below!"

Usopp ran, "Dammit!"

Luffy ran across the deck, rice ball in his mouth, in a panic. "If thish keheeps up we're gonna sink!"

"What?!" Mr. 9 shouted, flailing his arms.

I grabbed a rope, fighting to keep the sail up, I shouted, "Mr. 9, stop freaking out and come help me keep the sail in place!"

"Right away!" The 'king' grabbed the area of the rope just above where I was holding and we pulled.

I glanced over at the other rope it was threatening to come loose. "Sanji! The other rope!"

"I see it!" He grabbed it just at the knot came undone. "Shit!"

Usopp popped above deck again, "Nami! We're almost out of wood! What do I do?"

"Use the rest of it! We'll restock in Whiskey Peak!" She shouted to him, and he disappeared again.

I squinted against the wind, "Nami, what's our heading?!"

She glanced down at the Log pose, "We're on course, but this storm doesn't seem to be letting up!"

Mr. 9 and I pulled the rope as tight as we could, "Now, Mr. 9!" He quickly tied it in a tight knot. I rand over to help Sanji and Ms. Wednesday. "Ms. Wednesday, go help Usopp below deck!"

"Right!" She let go of the rope and disappeared below deck, leaving Sanji and I to get this rope in place.

_This is the most exhausting thing I've ever done in my life!_ I said to myself as Sanji knotted the rope in place.

"Are the ropes tied?" Nami asked.

I nodded, "Tighter than ever."

"That should be everything unless something else goes wrong."

I ran into the kitchen and got myself a glass of water, then went below deck. "Oh god!" Water was everywhere. I popped above deck, "Sanji! Get buckets! Every single one we have!"

He was there and back in the speed of light. "Here!"

I handed a bucket to Ms. Wednesday, "Fill it with water and hand it to Sanji!" I turned to the chef, "Once we give you a bucket toss the water overboard! If we don't get rid of some of this water soon we'll sink!" He nodded as I grabbed a bucket for myself.

Usopp broke the surface of the water, "Gah!"

"Is the leak fixed?" I asked handing a bucket full of water to Sanji.

"Almost! There's just a little more I need to fix!"

"Hurry! Merry can't take much more water in her and there's only so fast Vivi and I can go!" Usopp submerged again, and Ms. Wednesday froze. I turned to her, "Don't stop! We need to get this water out NOW!"

The blue haired woman worked double time. After the hull was patched Usopp joined us in getting the water out, and when we were done with that, there wasn't a cloud in the sky.

It was warm, sunny, with calm winds. Perfect sailing weather.

And we were all laying on the deck, completely exhausted.

Except for Luffy, who was on his usual perch, and Zoro, who had finally decided to wake the hell up.

I heard him stand up, "Well, I'm rested." He walked over to us, "Come on, the weather 's nice n'all, but that's no reason to be lazy." He turned, "We better be on the right track, that's all I can say."

_Shut up, you bastard!_ I thought angrily.

"What are you two doing here?" I assumed the question was towards Mr. 9 and Ms. Wednesday.

"YOU FOOL!" Mr. 9 shouted in substitute of an actual answer.

"We're on a side mission to take them home, their town 's called Whiskey Peak."

"Since when did we become a transport service for thugs?" He asked rhetorically, "We don't owe them anything."

"I donno." Luffy answered.

"Ah... Why did I even ask." I pushed myself to my knees. I wanted to do way more than beat him in a fight at that moment. I saw him kneel down in front of Mr. 9 and Ms. Wednesday. "So, tell me, what were your strange names again? Because I don't think that you can be trusted."

The distress on Mr. 9's face showed greatly. "Um, well... My name is Mr. 9."

"I'm called Ms. Wednesday."

Zoro smiled, "Riight... You know those names sound familiar, and that's what's bothering me. In fact the more I think about it, the more I'm certain I've heard them somewhere before." The pair squeaked.

_How would Zoro know them? Unless, did who ever they work for try to hire him?_ I didn't even notice Nami walk up behind him.

"Or... maybe I hav-AUUG!" Nami punched Zoro with impressive force, "Gaaahh!"

She glared so hard at him I could swear I saw a red haze surround her. "You jerk! You think you can just sleep while we do all the work!? You're lucky we didn't toss your lazy ass overboard!"

He glared back at her, a green haze surrounding him.

The next few moments were truly amazing.

Zoro stood up, ready to punch Nami back, but she ducked kicking him firmly between the legs then on the head several more times.

_Mental note: Never fight with Nami when she's angry._

Mr. 9 and Ms. Wednesday cowered before Nami as Zoro nursed his head. She stood tall, "Listen up everyone! There's no way to know what's going to happen next!" Sanji grabbed and lit a cigarette. "During the terror most of us just experienced I came to the understanding of why this sea was named the Grand Line. My navigation skills are useless here, anything can happen, but mark my words I _WILL_ guide us through!"

"Uhhh... Okay." Usopp said. "You sure about that, Nami?"

"Without a doubt!" Everyone was standing now, "We're gonna be fine, just wait and see!" She walked forward, staring out over the sea, "Speaking of which," She pointed through a fog covering the horizon. "We're here!" The fog seemed to magically clear, revealing and island that seemed to be filled with giant Cacti. "Our first journey on the Grand Line comes to an end."

I couldn't help but laugh with joy. "We made it!" I shouted.

"It's an island!" Luffy said.

"So _this_ is Whiskey Peak." Sanji stood in awe, "The landscape is unlike anything I've ever seen."

"Whoa, those cactus are humongous!"

Mr. 9 and Ms. Wednesday jumped on to the railing, everyone looked over at them, "Thank you, but we must be leaving." Mr. 9 said.

"It's been an interesting ride to say the least," Ms. Wednesday glanced at me.

"Perhaps we'll meet again someday."

Then together they said, "Bye-bye, baby." Before back flipping into the water.

"Uhhh... Well that was a quick exit..." Nami said.

"I guess we'll never find out what they were really up too."

"Aw, who cares? We're landing!" Luffy had his eyes firmly locked on shore.

There's a water way all the way up to the shore-line." Nami observed, "We can go inland by ship."

Usopp started shaking, "Er... Um... I'm weighing the possibilities of monsters out there."

Sanji breathed out a puff of smoke, "That's definitely a possibility. This is the Grand Line."

Luffy looked back at Usopp, "No problem, if we find monsters, we can just leave."

Nami stepped forward, "That's not true, according to what Crocus said, it's imperative we stay on this island, at least for a little while."

Luffy tilted his head just slightly, "But why?"

The navigator raised the arm that had the log pose on it, "The log pose needs enough time to record the island's magnetic field, and until that's done we have to stay put."

I looked at the sky, fighting my way through a haze to memories of what Shanks had explained to me about Log poses. "It can take different amounts of time depending on the island right?"

Nami nodded, "Some may take a few hours, others may take several days."

Usopp got even more defensive, "Suppose this island is crawling with monsters, what if we get stuck here waiting? That's stupid! We'd be done for! What's the point of navigation coordinates if you're _dead_?"

"It's either we wait, or sail blind, Usopp." I said turning to him, "Would you rather die horribly at sea, or valiantly fighting monsters?"

That seemed to quiet him down. Luffy smiled, "Let's not even think about the monsters until we have to. Their not even there!"

Zoro leaned forward, "As strange as this seems, I agree." _That is strange.. Zoro __**agreeing**__ with someone? Almost as strange as Shanks without beer!_ "Let's not worry yet."

"Now that that's settled," Sanji said, "Let's get going, and I'll keep you safe Nami and Leanah."

Usopp suddenly grabbed his throat, "I don't think I'm gonna be able to make it with this cold, it's a condition really," I rolled my eyes, Usopp had a long way to go before he was even _close_ to being a brave warrior of the sea. "You guys just go on without me."

Nami glanced at Whiskey Peak, then back at us, "Alright everybody, get ready, and make sure you're prepared to run as well as fight."

Usopp continued on his fake disease, "I think I've really got it bad, in fact it's commonly refereed to as 'Don't Go to the Island!' disease!"

We sailed into a thick fog, "What's waiting for us out there?" Sanji said to himself.

I grabbed Ami's hilt, "I don't know... but I have a bad feeling..."

Things seemed to get dangerously quiet, even with Usopp's whimpering. I gulped, the feeling I was getting never lead to anything good. I had gotten the same feeling back when I met Hawk-eyes.

Luffy squinted through the fog, "Huh... something's moving over there."

Sanji noticed it too, "Who are they?"

I looked and saw the growing shapes as well. "The people who live here?" I ventured, tightening my grip on Ami.

"Be on your guard everyone." Nami warned.

Usopp drew his slingshot, "Well, I may have to fight monsters, but at least I came prepared." Zoro stayed silent, a hand hovering over the hilts of his swords, ready to strike at any moment. Usopp continued, "Who ever's out there be ready. Show yourself and face my wrath!" His knees were shaking so much it was amazing he was even standing.

We sailed a little further, and... _Wait... is that... cheering?_

The fog around us cleared, reveling a huge crowd of people. _Cheering_ people.

"Welcome to the Grand Line!" "Greetings and good tidings great travelers!" "We're happy to have you here in Whiskey Peak!"

Usopp flicked his goggles down, magnifying the people, "Those aren't monsters, they're people... and they seem happy we're here."

Luffy laughed, Sanji seemed a little more skeptical, "What the hell 's wrong with 'um?"

"Pirates are always welcome in our town!" "Hooray for the heroes of the Sea!"

_What the __**hell?!**_

**Author's Note:**

Up next most of the fun times in Whiskey Peak. The fine (drugged) wine, the kind (bounty hunters) People, Zoro taking all 100 Whiskey Peak agents, and Leanah the background ninja!  
>Also... kudos if you spot the memory slip Leanah has. It shouldn't be too hard, I punctuated it very well.<p>

Your ever willing author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	25. Leanah the Background Ninja

Sanji smiled, his eyes turning into hearts. "Aw yeah! I've never seen so many cute girls in one place." I wanted to whack him on the head, letting his guard down because of _women_.

I looked around at the rest of the crew. Luffy never had his guard up, Zoro still had a hand over his swords, Nami was smiling, but I could tell that she didn't buy into the "We love pirates" bit. Usopp had completely bought into it.

We docked and were met by a very tall man. "Wel-" He coughed, "Ma, ma, Maaaa! Welcome!" He said, smiling. "My name is Igarapoi, and it is my honor as mayor to welcome you to Whiskey Peak." I looked at the saxophone in his hand and got an uneasy feeling, there was something more to it...

"Oh..." Our captain looked up at him. "Great, I'm Luffy, nice to meet cha." Luffy pointed at Igarapoi's hair, "Nice hair, I like the curls." Igarapoi did have odd curls. I frowned, nothing about this town made me feel anything but uneasy.

"You'll find that this is a place that thrives on making liquor and music," I perked up at liquor, "Hospitality is a matter of pride in our town, the smiles run long and the liquor flows as bountiful as sea water." He was really selling this selfless act, I was impressed. "Would you permit us to throw a party in your arrival, so we may hear-" He coughed again, "Ma, maa, maaa- Your tales of adventure."

I exhaled as Luffy, Sanji, and Usopp gleefully made their thoughts known. They danced off, leaving Zoro, Nami and me to marvel at their idiocy.

"Idiots." Nami said dryly. Then she thought of something, She approached Igarapoi, "By the way," She held up the log pose, "How long until the log pose registers the magnetic field?"

"Log what? Oh, such boring details we'll have to keep for now." He said, then put an arm around Nami, "Surely you'll want to rest after your long journey. Now, let's prepare to party! Sing and be merry, entertain our guests!"

The island residents cheered even more as the mayor led Nami into a building, Zoro and I followed a little ways behind.

"This is an interesting development." I whispered to him.

"Very." He replied dryly.

"Any plans?"

"Drink, get drunk, and sleep."

I snorted, "You slept all day, through a freaking super storm, even, and you _still_ need sleep?"

"A swordsman needs his sleep."

"You really are crazy." I tugged off my bandana and shoved it in my pocket, but tightened my pony tail.

We entered the building where the party was getting underway. Luffy was clearing entire tables of food, Usopp was telling lies about his "adventures", and Sanji was completely surrounded by women.

I squeezed my eyes shut, "Idiots."

"Tell me about it."

We moved over and sat by Nami. It seemed we had our own little semi-sane group forming in contrast to the other three members of the crew. The three of us sat there, watching the party carry on to its pique.

Igarapoi walked over to us, holding two mugs and a third person following behind with another, "Please, don't hold back on my account." He placed a mug in front of me and Nami and the third was placed in front of Zoro. I reached out and grabbed mine.

Nami waved her hands, "Oh no, I'm not drinking."

He smiled, "Don't worry-" He coughed, "Ma, ma, maaa. Don't you worry, that is a very special drink, made by using only the sweetest premium grapes, it contains all the flavorful benefits of a fine wine, but none of the alcohol." Nami and Zoro took their mugs.

I shrugged, and downed the whole thing. Sure it tasted like wine, but I could tell there was something more in it. I frowned internally, but smiled up at the mayor.

Nami hesitantly took a drink, "Yeah, you're right! This is delicious!"

"We had an excellent grape harvest this year. Now! To celebrate that harvest, our traditional toast competition!" The people around him all cheered raising their glasses.

I crossed my legs, accepting another mug of the strange wine. Zoro glanced over at me, I smiled, raising my glass to him, he took a drink, then looked back at me, I smiled wider, taking a small drink from my own glass.

"The rules are simple," The mayor said, "Make a toast, take a drink, this continues for as long as you can hold your liquor. The last one standing is the winner. Join us!"

Nami smiled apologetically, "Hehe.. no thanks, I'm fine, you can go ahead, I'd rather watch the competition."

Igarapoi smiled, "Did I mention that the prize is..." He pulled out a large bag of money, "100 thousand berries?!"

Nami was suddenly on her feet, mug held out, "Then fill 'er up!" she turned slightly to Zoro and me, "Zoro, Leanah, stand up and join us! You need the money don't you?"

I sighed. I did use the last of my money buying that hair tie... Zoro seemed a little more shocked, he looked up at her, "Huh?!"

And in a flash Zoro and I were more or less forced into joining the drinking competition.

I smiled, it felt like I was back with Shanks and his crew, except the drinks there weren't drugged. I toasted, "To my captains, old and new."

"Yeah, whatever." Zoro and I took another drink.

"Your turn." I said, grabbing another full mug.

He shrugged, "To... Swords?"

I frowned at him, thought for a moment, then raised my glass, "I'll toast to that." another drink. Two more mugs, "My turn so... Hm... rival who push us to do better?"

Now it was his turn to frown, then he just downed his glass.

"We done with making up toasts?" I asked, downing the mug.

"Yeah."

"I bet I'll drink more than you."

He stared at me, "Like hell you will."

"You didn't travel with a man who's motto was 'never not be drunk.'" I downed the mug, "Six."

His stare turned into a glare, and Zoro and I got into our own separate contest.

After mug 10 things sort of started blurring together, I think Luffy knocked out a chef, Sanji was covered in girls, and Usopp began telling far more outlandish lies than before.

After mug 13 Zoro said, "Ehm callin' eht quits. Good nigh'"

I laughed, a flush on my cheeks, "I told you you couldn't out drink meh Zoro! Hahahehehehahaha!" I rubbed my nose, "Mah first victory! Even eff etz not a showrd fight like I promised." I laughed more, then asked for another mug, raising it high, "One day! One day I will..." I blinked tiredly, "I _will_ beat you. An I'll show that... that _bastard_." I downed the mug, then 'passed out' next to Zoro.

"Zoro, Leanah, Are you quitin' already? You wusses!" She let out a very drunken sounding shriek. I managed to tune out the rest of the party until things got quiet.

"You're not passed out." Zoro muttered.

"Neither are you." I replied.

Pause, "Fair point."

I opened an eye, "Guards are gone." I said.

He stood up, stretching, I did the same. He cracked his neck. "That was some act you put on there at the end."

I raised an eye brow, smiling, "Who said it was an act? I will beat you one day." I grabbed my bandana from my pocket, tying it around my head again. "You're not the only who made a promise." I saw a shadow pass the door, "Now we gotta get out of here, before they notice we're awake." Zoro started off towards a door, "Uh... Zoro... the back door is this way." I pointed.

He turned, blushing angrily, "I knew that."

I nodded, "Right you are, Mr. First Mate."

"I'm not the first mate."

"Were you the first member of the crew? Are you the one Luffy listens to the most?"

He stayed silent as we took the back door out of the house, and scaled up the wall. "Why are you following me?!"

"There's not much else to do... Unless you want me to stay fake passed out in there."

"Chs... Just stay outta my way."

"What ever you say, Mr. First Mate." A tick mark appeared on his head. I was now satisfied with myself. I suppose by this point I had set a goal to annoy Zoro at least once a week. Was that petty? Yes, it was very petty. Did I care? _Hell_ no.

Zoro perched on the roof top, I joined him, I strained to hear what was being said below us.

"Well! Why don't you go try to kill that damn whale! We tried our best, ya know!"

"Mr. 9." I whispered.

"Yep." Zoro confirmed, "Damn, I knew those two would be nothing but trouble."

"Before you question the validity of my plan, you should see this." I could hear a paper rustle.

Zoro cursed, "They've got Luffy's wanted poster. Chs. The knew who we were from the moment we docked."

"Bounty hunters."

"_**WHAT?!**_ 30 MILLION BERRIES?!"

"For those morons!?"

_As I recall, we saved your __**ass**__, Mr. 9..._ I thought bitterly, reaching for my sword. Zoro stopped me.

"Wait." He leaned forward, trying to listen to the rest of the conversation.

"Don't be foolish," Igarapoi said, "Appearances can be deceiving. That goes fo-" He coughed, "Ma, ma, maa! That goes for all of you."

"I'm sorry."

"Our prey has been trapped, and that's news the boss will enjoy. For now we'll confiscate everything of value from their ship."

_Value?_ I chuckled slightly, _Unless they manage to find Nami's money stash there's nothing of value on Merry._

"So... What should we do with them now?"

"Kill them?" Mr. 9 suggested.

I grit my teeth, I really wanted to hurt Mr. 9 now. "If we kill them the bounty drops 30%." That was a very logical way of thinking about it.. "The government prefers to hold public executions." A shiver went down my spine. "Now go, I want them alive."

Zoro silently drew one of his swords, changing to a cross legged position. He smiled evilly, I stood full height next to him, a hand hovering over both Ami and Ana.

"Hey," He called down to them, "Sorry to interrupt."

I smiled, "Would you mind letting our friends rest? They're tired from the turbulent trip."

Our 'sudden' arrival was met with disbelief and shock. Someone exited the building, "Hey, Mr. 8, Ms. Monday! Two of them escaped from the room when we weren't looking!"

Ms. Wednesday glared up at us, "They're right over there..."

Mr. 8 did the same, "Sneaky wretches, you should have stayed asleep with your friends!"

"A good Swordsman never makes the mistake of letting his guard down."

"_Especially _in a town that welcomes pirates." I slowly drew my swords.

Zoro's smile morphed into a smirk, "Judging by the scowls and cheep costumes, I'm guessing you're all bounty hunters."

"Your specialty is robbing drunk pirates who are stupid enough to fall for your hospitality. Certainly original."

Zoro stood up, "I count about a hundred of you scum-bags, give or take, and I'll fight every single one of you."

I glared at him internally, _Of course he'd leave me out of the fight..._ I almost sighed, and after that long day of sailing I was ready for some more fighting action.

"You hear me," He called in a challenging manner, "Baroque Works?"

Everyone below us reacted in utter horror, "How do they know our name!?" I had to fight to not smile, they just lumped me in with Zoro, which, on a normal day, probably would have bothered me, but, this day I made an exception.

I stood tall, chuckling. "Zoro was famous throughout the East Blue as a _bounty hunter,_ the best."

"Your company tried to entice me with a job offer, naturally I said no." He seemed to be having fun, "Do the same rules still apply? Employee identities kept secret, cheesy code names, the bosses identity and whereabouts also a mystery? Baroque Works, the criminal group that faithfully carries out their orders like herded sheep. Heh, that's some secret."

Mr. 8's face darkened, "This is a surprise. If you know all of our secrets, then we are left with no other choice but to kill you both, and two more gravestones... shall be added to the cactus rocks tonight." He smiled evilly, almost as if it was meant to scare us. He laughed, "Kill them!"

I just barely glanced at Zoro, he gave an almost imperceptible nod, and we were gone. We both jumped off the roof faster than you could blink. No trace of us ever being there. Boy was it fun to see the shock on their faces.

"You really gonna take on all of them?"

"I said I was." He glanced down at his swords, "'Sides, this is the real field test for my new swords."

I nodded, "Right, I've got yer back though, in case anything goes wrong."

He nodded, and we went our separate ways.

Ms. Wednesday was the first agent to speak, "Th... They disappeared..."

"They're gone!" Mr. 9 shouted.

"What?" Mr. 8 was understandably confused, "But how could they just disappear?!"

The Baroque Works agents all looked around, trying to find us. Zoro and I stood in the middle of the crowd, staring up at where we had been, "Funny," I said, "I don't see anything."

"Neither do I," He replied, playing along. We smiled when they all noticed us, it took them a lot longer than I would have expected from trained bounty hunters.

They pointed their guns at us, "Just who do you think you are?!" "Fire!"

Duck, roll out of the way, and gone in a flash.

"Incompetent morons, they just shot each other!" Mr. 8 shouted.

Mr. 9 whined, "Yeah, and the pirates got away!"

I chuckled from my hiding spot.

"Rah! Just kill them, their only a man and a girl!"

I stepped out from my hiding spot, sliding Ami over Mr. 9's shoulder to the blade touched his chin. "There's one question you've got to ask yourselves..." I said darkly.

I looked over and saw Zoro doing about the same thing to Mr. 8. "Will two gravestones really be enough?"

"There they are! Get 'um!" They raised their guns, much to the number agent's distress.

"No! Don't shoot! You're going to shoot us!" Mr. 8 raised his saxophone over his head, "Igarapa!" and tiny bullets flew from the instrument, I raised an eye brow. _I __**knew**__ there was something off about it._

I quickly pulled my blade back, and retreated to the shadows again. This next part was all Zoro's. Meaning I could wander around town. _Hm... surely they've got non-drugged wine somewhere around here..._ I slipped through the alley ways, checking in buildings every so often.

"They couldn't have gone far! Let's find them men!" They were close.

"Whoop!" I ducked into a building just in time for them to run passed me, "Gah, it'll be harder getting around than I thought..." My brow creased, "And it'll probably be even worse after the actual fighting starts..." I heard gun shots. "That was quick." I remarked dryly, quickening my pace to get to the outskirts of town.

I scaled a building, _Nothing better than roof top jumping to get around!_ I thought. Then rethought that, Zoro was on a roof top not far away, "Shit!" I ducked down and hopped off the building. "Man.." I booked it into a building. _To be fair... He's doing a good job taking them all off of my course so he can fight them himself._ I sighed and searched this building.

I heard a panicked cry, "He's heading straight for us!"

Then a much calmer voice, "Two swords style, _Hawk Wave!_" I blinked.

"Come on!" I whispered angrily. He was right above me! I walked through the room, then stopped, _Scratching? Why is there a scratching sound?_ My internal question was answered when a group of people fell through the ceiling. I jumped back, "Damn!" I ran out of that house, "Jesus, Mary, and Joseph!" I walked away, being careful not to step on any unconscious or dead people.

The next house I went in... I hit pay dirt. "Finally!" I grabbed a bottle, then heard a tremendous crash. I knew I shouldn't worry... but... I walked out and looked up at a cloud of dust rising from the roof.

A horrible shriek came from the rooftop, the dust cleared, and there was Zoro, standing with a hand on Ms. Monday's head. I strained to hear what he was saying. "-ong muscle-woman? Didn't you want to pit your strength against mine? Well, I guess you lost." I moved closer to get a better look. "Is that all you got for me, Baroque Works?" I could see he had blood on his face, and he _licked_ it off. "Cause you're gonna need to do a lot better than that."

I stared at him in awe mixed with horror. The agents just seemed to being in utter shock.

"No way... He.. beat Ms. Monday! That's not possible!"

Mr. 8 seemed to come to a sudden realization, "That's it! The marines must have made a mistake on that poster."

Mr. 9 nodded, "That makes sense, I can understand why _this_ guy would have a 30 million berry bounty on his head. He must be the real captain of those pirates, and she must be his first mate." I glared daggers at the 'king'.

"Yeah, they must be... It seemed strange that that weakling would fetch such a high price..." Ms. Wednesday said.

Mr. 8 seemed undeterred, "Even if this guy is the captain, this is getting disgraceful. The boss put us in charge of this town, and he's not going to be very pleased if we lose to one measly pirate and his first mate."

_I swear to god, the next time someone calls me Zoro's first mate, Heads. __**Will. ROLL!**_

"Well then," Ms. Wednesday said, smirking, "It looks likes we finally get to fight."

I opened the wine bottle, "Oh this isn't good..."

Mr. 9 got a cocky look on his face, "Something you may not know, in Baroque Works the smaller an agents number is the greater their power, as well as their rank in the company. Take us for example, I am Mr. 9 and he is Mr. 8, we're single digit agents, and don't forget Ms. Wednesday." I took a drink from the bottle, he was really going at this speech thing, or at least it seemed to me he was.. "Our abilities are much greater than the riffraff you've been fighting against so far tonight."

Zoro smiled, "I've found that fancy titles mean nothing when it comes to fighting," He looked over at me, "The strongest wins, and that's it."

I shrugged, crossing my arms. _Why'd you look at me? I'm not the one yer proving this too._ I thought bitterly.

A brisk breeze swept in, everyone was silent, until Mr. 8 attacked, "Igarapapa!" Zoro dodged the attack.

"Let's go, Ms. Wednesday!"

The blue haired woman smiled, "Of course, Mr. 9!" The 'king' began jumping up the building as Ms. Wednesday whistled, "Come here, Carue!"

A large duck sped passed me. No, I'm not kidding. A _duck_. I blinked, "Oh dear lord..." I turned I had a feeling this battle would only go from bad to worse for the agents. I rubbed my eyes with my free hand, all the excitement was getting to me.

_To think that just a few days ago I was sitting, bored out of my mind, in Lougetown._ I sighed again, taking another drink. One of the bounty hunters stumbled into the ally way. "Hey!" He shouted, drawing a knife.

"Hm?" I glanced at him, _Really? I'm two drinks in and __**now**__ I get to fight?_ I wasn't even really in the mood anymore. I drew Ami, he ran at me, I dodged and hit him easily in the back of the neck with Ami's hilt. "Pssshhhh... You're not bounty hunters... Yer amateurs." I walked back to the house I got the bottle of wine from. Crashes, screams, more crashes, that horrible fanfare. I pinched the bridge of my nose, _I need sleep..._

Things went quiet. I took a deep breath in, the battle was over. I set down the bottle I had been drinking from, and grabbed two more, then jogged over to the building. I approached Zoro carefully, "Yo."

"Hm?" He turned slightly, I held up one of the bottles, "Oh, Thanks."

"No problem." I tossed it too him, then walked over and sat down, "This town is stupid."

He nodded, popping his bottle open. "You get into any trouble?"

"There was one guy, hardly trouble. Though I did almost get smashed when you cut that hole in the roof." I pointed towards the hole, then opened the bottle taking a drink, "You did good." I took a drink.

"Thanks."

There was an explosion. I turned slightly, "What was that?"

"I donno."

We continued drinking, sitting in silence, starring at the sky. Such a picturesque moment.

Movement below drew my attention, I squinted down at the Baroque Works agents, "There's two more down there."

"What?" He looked as well.

There was another explosion, "You will not lay a hand upon our princess! Not while the captain of Alabasta security still stands!"

"Igaram!"

"Igaram, captain of Alabasta royal security, and princess Vivi Nefertari of Alabasta Kingdom, we have come here in the name of the boss of Baroque Works to see that you are both eliminated."

I clicked my tongue, "Oh dear."

Zoro wiped off his bottom lip, "This could be good... I left Luffy down there with 'um."

I glanced over at him, "You did what now?"

"Heh, I didn't think this would happen."

I looked down at the blue haired woman, _Vivi... have I called her that before? Do I... know her? Wait... That's not important right now, My captain is down there with two very bad people... Aha Luffy 'll be fine._ I finished off my wine, tossing the bottle to the side, _What have we gotten ourselves into?__  
><em>

**Author's note:**

Yay Whiskey Peak! Whoop! Still a little bit to go with Whiskey peak, then Little Garden. I have something Special planned for April 1st, but I'll only be able do get it done and have it be continuity, I don't really know how well any of my original ideas will be received, but... Eh, Write for the self, not the people. Not saying I don't love you and your reviews. Anway, up next: Luffy Vs. Zoro

Your ever willing author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	26. Luffy vs Zoro? Stop fighting, dammit!

"Aw dammit..."

"Luffy's trapped down there..." I sighed.

"We better go do something about it." He tossed his bottle behind him. I hopped off the roof, he followed.

Zoro and I tried to rouse the sleeping captain. "I think he's worse than you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Zoro glared daggers at me, then there was a very impressive explosion, We shared a glance, grabbed Luffy and booked it for safety.

I felt a little (a lot) insensitive for just leaving Vivi back there, but it was only for a little while, we returned in time to see Mr. 9 valiantly try to fight for Vivi's safety, and get blown up by a piece of snot from Mr. 5.

"Wait, hold on a second," The swordsman was staring at Mr. 5 in horror, "Did that come from his nose?"

"I think it did..." I answered softly. We didn't notice Igaram crawl over to us. He grabbed Zoro's ankle.

"Whoa! Hey, hey! What are you doin'?" Zoro shouted, trying to pull his leg away.

"Swordsman!" He shouted desperately, "I have a most unreasonable request, but I need someone with strength such as yours!"

Zoro kept trying to pull his leg away, "Yeah right, you gotta be kidding me. Would you let go a' me?"

I crossed my arms, listening to Igaram, "Both of those villains possess Devil Fruit powers, and there's nothing I can do to stop them." Something tugged in my heart, "And that's why I'm begging you now. Please protect princess Vivi of Alabasta in my place!"

"Ugh! Let go of me!"

"Please!" He begged. I grabbed Ami's and Ana's hilts, I knew what I wanted to do. But I also knew the wine would set in at any moment. "Surely you will be rewarded if you can deliver the princess safely to our noble home of Alabasta Kingdom!" He coughed, looking more distressed, "I am just a humble servant, but I'm begging you to do this, please protect the Princess! I beg you!" He coughed more, Igaram was obviously in great pain, and yet here he was, begging for Zoro's help.

Zoro didn't quite see what I was seeing though, "Forget it! Just until a few minutes ago you were still trying to kill me! What do you think I am, a fool?!"

"Zoro," My grip tightened, "I think we should do it."

"Wha-" He was cut off by someone else.

"So... about this reward..." I looked up and saw Nami sitting there, _So not surprising, I knew Nami would have been too smart to fall for their cheep tricks._ She smiled, pointing to Igaram "I'll take it! Alright, how does a billion berries sound?"

Zoro seemed shocked, "Nami?"

"Huh!?" Igaram obviously wasn't on board with such a hefty reward, "What did you say?!" He coughed, "Ma, ma, maa?"

"I thought you were asleep." Zoro said, turning to the navigator.

"Come on, you didn't _really_ think Nami would fall for that?"

The navigator smiled, "Really, Zoro," She mimicked her act last night, "Oh I can't drink anymore but I _have_ to win the contest!"

"Arg, what ever." Zoro rubbed his head.

I glanced down at Igaram, "Ma. Ma, Maa!" He seemed shocked by Nami.

Nami looked at him as well, "So why don't you go a head and promise us that 1 billion berry reward, huh Captain? Because if we don't agree to help your princess, then she's probably.." Nami smiled wickedly, "Gonna die."

I was shocked by how forward Nami was with that statement. Igaram looked away, "I am just a simple soldier, I cannot promise such an immense reward."

Nami got down in front of him, "Surely you aren't suggesting that your princess's life is worth less than that, right?"

Zoro crossed his arms, "Doesn't really fight fair, does she?"

I shook my head, "Nope."

Igaram pushed himself up, "I can't promise anything, but if you're willing to deliver the princess to Alabasta then you had best discuss the terms of the reward directly with her."

Nami smiled again, "heh, Which means I have to save her first, yeah?"

"Please understand..." The royal guard pleaded, "Her life is in danger."

Nami stood up, admitting partial defeat, "Oh alright," She ran a hand through her hair, "I'll go a head and save your darling princess, for now." Nami turned to me and Zoro, pointing off in the direction Vivi had run off, "Well you two, go get her!"

"What?!" I shouted, not that I was opposed to saving Vivi, but just the way Nami demanded it of us.

"Screw that! No!" Zoro yelled, "If you wanna make money then that's fine, but leave me out of it!"

Nami easily stood up to Zoro, "Oh come on, don't be stupid and stubborn, the money I make is certainly mine, but the contracts I land benefit all of us, why can you not see that?"

I crossed my arms, glancing over in the direction of the princess as Zoro and Nami went at it. "You seriously expect me to buy into that crap!?"

"What? All you really need to do here is cut up a few guys."

"Oh really is that all?!" I sighed, _These two might be at it all night..._ "Don't boss me around like you do that idiot cook!"

I shifted, biting my lip. _This is ridiculous..._

"Oh I see, you're just afraid you're gonna end up losing to them." _Ouch._

"You wanna try saying that again, you greedy brat!" Zoro was shaking with anger.

"You're a big baby who's afraid of losing to bigger losers than you are!"

"You better shut your mouth right now!"

"Guys..."

"NOT NOW, LEANAH!" They shouted at me, I pursed my lips, _I was just going to mention how our captain just got up and walked away.. but..._

Nami looked back at Zoro, hands on her hips, "Besides, did you forget? You still owe me some money from a while back."

Zoro was back to having his arms crossed over his chest, "What? I don't owe you anything."

"Yeah, I lent you 100 thousand berries for some swords in Lougetown."

This was getting boring, _If they don't stop squabbling soon... Vivi isn't going to last much longer..._

"I gave you the 100 thousand back almost right away, someone gave me the swords, so I didn't even need your stupid berries."

"Maybe so, but you agreed to pay me 300% interest, bringing your total to 300 thousand berries." Zoro's eye twitched, he was obviously having a flash back of some kind. "And you agreed to it, you still owe interest."

"I gave you the 100 thousand back the same day, you can't really expect me to pay you interest."

I fantasized about being with Shanks and his crew. _Hm, we would be sailing... a light breeze, there'd be music... and drinks... and I wouldn't have to sit here, and wait for these two to stop arguing..._

"Sure can." Nami looked up at him with a dark expression, "Come on," She said coldly, "Can't you even keep one little promise?" Zoro reacted like he'd been stabbed in the gut. Nami smiled, having finally found the trump card for Zoro, "Now just do what I say, and I'll consider calling us even."

Zoro glared at her, "Someday you're gonna die a horrible death!" I almost agreed with him.

"Oh yes, and I'm sure I'll go straight to hell." She turned on me, "Now, what do I have to do to get you to save her."

"Nothing." I said curtly, "Saving Vivi is the right thing to do, regardless of reward or not. I would've already been running to save her but..." A guilty smile came across my face, "I may have over done it with the wine... just a little bit." I certainly felt tipsy.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Zoro shouted, he turned and ran, grabbing my collar as he passed, "Damn women!"

"Love you, too." I deadpanned as he dragged me down the dusty roads.

"THANKS, ZORO!"

"SHUT UP!" He shouted back at Nami. He dragged me a little ways farther.

"Ya know, I can walk." I said, "All yer really doin right now is getting my clothes all dusty and wasting your energy."

"What?" He stopped, dropping me. I stood up and brushed myself off.

"I can walk just damn fine. When I'm tipsy like this, it's my sword skills that fly out the window." I sighed, then began running, "Enough about me. We have to go save the Princess!"

We ran through the maze of streets, hunting the slightest hint of Vivi or Mr. 5.

"Where is this princess?!" He shouted from behind me.

I slowed down, _That's a good question..._ There was a large explosion to our left, "I think she's that way." We ran toward the explosion, switching to roof hopping as we got closer.

When we arrived we found ourselves staring down at an empty street, "Dammit!" Zoro cursed, there was another explosion not to far away.

I pointed, "There! Let's go! We don't have much time!" We jumped from roof to roof, taking the path of least resistance. We arrived just in time.

Zoro managed to get in the way of Mr. 5's attack to cut the... snot bomb in half. I jumped down as well, landing nicely on my feet next to my crew mate.

"Augg! I just cut someone's snot!" He whined.

"Yeah, but I bet it won't be the worst thing you ever do on the Grand Line." I said, slowly drawing my swords, _I have to at least try to fight._ I thought to myself.

"Dammit!" Vivi shouted, "I don't have time for this! Don't you ever give up?!"

I knocked her weapon away, "Relax Princess Vivi, we're here to help you, not harm you."

She seemed shocked, "...What? You're helping me?" I nodded, keeping my eyes locked on Mr. 5 and his partner.

"I take it you two are the ones who beat up all the lowly employees who were stationed out here." Mr. 5's partner said.

"Why would you two want to protect the princess of Alabasta?"

"We've got our own reasons." Zoro answered.

"Well, what ever your reasons we're gonna have to eliminate you." Mr. 5 explained, "You see, you're in our way."

His partner let out an irritating laugh that made me want to run her through. "Aw, what a shame." She said in a mock sad tone.

Mr. 5 stuck a finger up his nose, I was mildly disgusted but held my ground. Zoro popped on of his swords out of its sheath.

The moment was tense. Broken only by an angry shout. "I FOUND YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOU!" I registered the voice to be Luffy's and looked in the direction the shout came from, and saw Luffy coming at us. He was still boated from all the food he had eaten earlier tonight, it looked quite hilarious, and would have been had he not been giving a death glare. _Something tells me he's not here to help us fight Mr. 5..._ "ZOOOOOROOOO!" _Yep... not here to help us fight Mr. 5. _The tone of his voice implied anger _at_ Zoro.

"Luffy! Thanks for coming, but we got this one," I faltered as Zoro said that, _Is he really that stupid?!_ "Unless that greedy brat dragged you into this too." Anyone could see Luffy wasn't here to help us.

Our captain huffed, glaring at the swordsman. "YOU ARE GONNA PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU FOR WHAT YOU DID!"

_Called it..._ I said in my head.

"WHAT?!" Zoro shouted back. "What kind 'a nonsense have you gotten into your head this time!?"

Luffy stepped forward, "Shut up and get ready! I'm about to kick your ungrateful little ass!"

"Ungrateful...?"

"Oh no..." I moaned, "Don't tell me this is about-"

"That's right! This is about what you did to those people! All of them were so nice to us, they welcomed us and threw us a party. And they gave us Food!" Luffy shouted, "And you repay them by cutting them all up with those swords of yours!"

Zoro was getting annoyed. "Yeah, but there's something you don't know!"

"Luffy, you gotta lis-" I tried to get in.

"JUST SHUT UP!" Luffy screamed, "And fight me!"

"This guy's just a complete idiot.." Vivi said in awe.

I sighed, "I can really see why you thought Zoro was the captain..."

"Ha," Mr. 5 laughed, "These idiots are fighting amongst themselves. How pathetic."

Mr. 5's partner laughed, "If we wait long enough maybe they'll kill each other and we won't have to bother with them."

Zoro sighed angrily, "Hold on, Luffy, can you just listen to me for a second."

"Seriously, Luffy. You don't have the whole story." I said pleadingly. "This town was popu-"

"No excuuusssseeeesssss!" Luffy bounced into the air, heading straight for us.

"OH GOD!" I rolled out of the way, as Zoro stayed put.

"Wait! NO!" He dodged a punch from Luffy at the last second, Luffy's fist connected with the rock behind him, crushing it to pieces. "You tryin' to kill me!?" Zoro shouted.

"Uhuh! Now die!"

Zoro gave the captain a blank look, then quickly dodged Luffy's kick, "Dammit!"

I got up, watching Luffy recklessly smash into different parts of the rock trying to kill Zoro. "Aw crap... This isn't good..." My brow furrowed.

"Why?" Vivi asked.

I rubbed my forehead with the back of my hand, "Luffy and Zoro are by far the strongest physical fighters on our ship. Plus they both use fighting styles that openly oppose each other." I explained, "Zoro is more used to fighting with and against slashing or sword techniques, while Luffy uses only blunt attacks. Luffy with his Devil Fruit ability is immune to blunt attacks, but vulnerable to slashing attacks..." I bit my lip, "There's a good chance they could actually kill each other if the fight gets serious."

Zoro jumped out of the way of another of Luffy's attacks, "He's gone crazy!" He said more to himself, "Luffy you've got to stop this!" The captain then tackled the swordsman and they went flying into a building.

"Dammit!" I swore, "How are we supposed to keep one person safe IF YOU TWO KEEP FIGHTING?!" I screamed, then turned to Mr. 5 and his partner, getting into a fighting stance.

"Well look at that, Mr. 5." She said moving to close her umbrella, "It looks like they're too busy fighting each other, they won't give us any trouble."

"Apparently, so why don't we leave those two idiots to their fight while we get rid of the third one and do the mission we were sent here to do. Eliminating Princess Vivi of Alabasta Kingdom." I focused, trying not to be distracted by Luffy and Zoro who constantly crossed through the middle of the battle field in their fight. "Shall we, Ms. Valentine?"

"Yes, Mr. 5!" They ran at us.

I brought my blades together, "_Storming blast!_" I shouted while making several cuts in the air, a separate green energy wave coming from each cut, creating a small storm of dust and energy heading straight for them.

They both dodged with ease, unfazed by my attack. C_rap! That was a new technique, and it didn't work!_

"QUIT SCREWING AROUND, DAMMIT!" Zoro shouted, kicking Luffy... straight into Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine. And that sent the two agents flying back into a building. I twitched. Zoro huffed, "Ya dumbass!"

I watched the building they had crashed into carefully. "This is either going to be really good for us, or really bad for us..." I muttered. A series of explosions marked a battle inside, Ms. Valentine floated out of the building, opening her umbrella.

"Now I'm really annoyed!" She shouted, "I hope you're ready to experience my Kilo-Kilo Fruit power!" She laughed, "Prepare to be smashed into a thousand tiny pieces and buried a hundred meters in the ground!" the woman floated to just above us.

"Mr. Bushido! Leanah! You have to get out of the way!" Vivi shouted, "She's going to-"

"Hush!" I told her.

"We have more important things to worry about right now." He said, his eyes firmly fixed on the building Luffy was in.

Captain emerged from the smoke, holding a badly beaten up Mr. 5 by the collar. He pat his stomach, back to his usual lean body. "That was a good work out. I finally managed to digest some of that food."

Vivi was naturally shocked, "He... He fought Mr. 5.. and _won_?! He took out one of Baroque Works best agents!"

"I told you, Luffy is one of the strongest physical fighters on our ship." I sheathed my swords, any more fighting would be completed by either Luffy or Zoro, my main goal now was to keep the princess out of the middle of it.

"Alright." Luffy said looking directly at Zoro, "Now let's finish this!"

"OK, Luffy, let's just calm down and talk about this.." Zoro said, trying to reason with him.

"Here I come," Ms. Valentine called, she continued to rant, but Zoro spoke over her.

"Hear me out for a second, everyone who lives here at Whiskey Peak is really a bounty hunter, so that makes the all our enemies."

"HEY!" She shouted again, "Pay attention to me you jackasses!"

Luffy dropped the Baroque Works agent, "You're just lying! Enemies wouldn't give us tasty food, would they?!"

Ms. Valentine had had enough of being ignored, "Taste my 10 thousand kilogram press!" She began falling at an incredible speed that would have mortally wounded anyone.

She was foiled when Zoro shifted to the left just enough to get out of her course of impact. "Fine then." He pulled his bandana off of his arm, "It doesn't look like there's any sense in trying to talk to you." He tied it around his head, "You know, you're really a moron."

"Crap... He's getting serious..." I took several steps back, until I was next to Vivi.

Zoro reached for his swords, "This time I'm not gonna hold back. It'll be your own fault if you die!"

"Sounds good to me!" Luffy shouted.

"Just a sec!" Vivi said, confused, "What's going on here? I thought you guys were on the same side?"

"They are." I answered, trying to think of a way to explain why this was OK. "... Our crew has a very odd silent understanding. If something happens... say we go too far against Luffy's wishes _or_ he gets in the way of us reaching our goals we can defect and fight." I waved a hand at Zoro and Luffy, "Luffy thinks Zoro has killed innocent people, that's a major no-no with our crew. Meanwhile Zoro here has two promises he wishes to fulfill, one of which is to never lose a fight. This is something I cannot stop at this point, it's best to just avoid them until they finish and regroup later." Vivi stared at me in horror this was something huge and I was taking it so lightly.

"Ready for my _Gum-gum_!" Luffy stretched his arms back as he ran forward.

Zoro had his three swords out and was running at Luffy, he brought his swords back, "_Oni..._"

They clashed.

"_BAZOOKA!_"

"_GIRI!_"

Just the sheer force of the attack sent a shock wave through the air.

I bit my lip, "Princess," I addressed Vivi pointing in the direction Nami was waiting, "We need to get out of here."

"No." She replied, "Wait..."

I looked away as Zoro and Luffy clashed again, sending each other flying into two separate buildings. "Princess we should really be going."

She nodded, "Right, but..." She looked down the destroyed street. "I don't know how safe we would be going through there..."

"It's the fastest way to where our navigator is waiting for us." I said. "Let's go cautiously, I doubt Luffy and Zoro have killed each other yet. And if they haven't..." I grabbed Ana, "I'll make sure you don't get hurt."

"OK." She seemed worried that she might endanger my position in the crew if I attacked either Luffy or Zoro, but that didn't matter to me. We slowly walked down the street, her duck making small worried noises.

Be barely moved half way down the street before the captain and the swordsman emerged from their respective buildings with large crashes, scaring the hell out of Vivi, her duck, and me.

They ran at each other, clashing again. Luffy moved to punch Zoro, but he dodged, so Luffy tried again with a kick in the opposite direction. The swordsman ducked and slashed at Luffy, making a small cut on the captain's face. Luffy returned the cut with a punch to the gut.

I grit my teeth, "Stop fighting!" I whispered angrily. They kept slamming each other around, and occasionally debris they had created would fly towards Me and Vivi, which I would deflect with my sword. "_Regaling Storm!_" I shouted, whirling my blades to create a small windstorm to push the stuff off course.

The fighting kept going back and forth, Zoro would get the upper hand, keeping for awhile, then Luffy would take it back with impressive force. Eventually Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine got back to their feet and tried interrupting the duel.

The response to this was the same from both swordsman and captain. "Shut up, and go away!" They glared at the officer agents, bringing a fist back to punch them "You're interfering..." They punched the officer agents, sending them flying, "WITH OUR FIGHT!"

I scratched the side of my face. "Seriously... this is going to get _way_ out of hand soon."

Vivi stared at the unconscious bodies of Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine. "They... took out two officer agents... unbelievable!"

Zoro turned to Luffy, "Shall we... continue with our fight?" He asked dangerously.

Luffy smiled almost manically back at him. "Yeah!"

The stood there for a moment, letting the tension rise so high you could almost see the surroundings distort because of it. They each had their own energy flowing about them.

My fingernails bit into my palm, "Seriously! Stop fighting!" They didn't hear me, too caught up in their fight. "**_Stop fighting, dammit!_**" I shouted. The tension between them had gotten so high the air _sparked_.

They both initiated attacks... that never finished.

A figure appeared behind them, an _angry_ figure, She punched them both, "STOP!" Both Luffy and Zoro fell down from the force of her punch. She put her hands on her hips, glaring down at them, "You two! What the heck do you think you're doing?!"

_**Battle:**__ Monkey D. Luffy vs. Roronoa Zoro_

_**Winner:**__ Nami_

**Author's Note:**

And the lesson here, kids, is this: Never upset Nami. I'm quite please with how this chapter came out, and I'm sure you'll all be glad to hear that I actually have a lot of the story planned out and I know where I'm going to end this one. I do plan to have a sequel, but it will all depend on how I'm feeling about continuing on when I get to that point. Also I'm fairly sure what I have planned in Alabasta will break your hearts. I know it hurt me just writing it out.

I wonder... I would like to poll you all, what do you think SE stands for? I, of course, know exactly what it stands for, but I just want to see what y'all think it _might_ mean. (Yes I realize I've asked this before, and I'll probably keep asking until the reveal. So get used to it.)

Your ever willing Author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	27. We become wanted by Baroque Works!

"It's lucky for you you managed to keep the girl safe!" She glared at me as well, "And you Leanah! Just standing there _letting them kill each other!_"

I held my hands up, "They wouldn't have listened anyway!" I defended.

"Arg, You almost lost us all a billion berries!" She walked between Luffy and Zoro, hoisting them up by their collars. "You understand?"

"Who is... that?" Vivi asked me quietly.

"Nami. She's the navigator... and a dangerous person when you piss her off." I saw Zoro twitch, then Luffy.

"But... What berries?" Vivi asked. Luffy and Zoro were glaring at each other again, Zoro weakly threw a punch at Luffy that connected with his cheek. "I don't understand. Why did you save me?" Luffy shoved his foot in Zoro's face.

"About that." Nami said cheerfully, ignoring that Luffy was now pushing on Zoro's face as the swordsman stretched Luffy's face a great deal. "You see, you and I have to have a little chat. We have to work out a contract for a reward."

"What?" The princess asked, "But..."

The captain and swordsman continued fighting until Nami slammed them into the ground again, "KNOCK IT OFF!"

I looked back at Vivi, "We're really not bad people, I swear." I smiled at her.

She just looked at me as if I were an alien.

I shrugged, then looked to Nami, "So... Where are we going to have this discussion?"

"Far away from here." She answered, walking away, dragging Luffy and Zoro behind her.

I motioned for the princess to go before me, "I'll take the rear in case Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine get up."

Vivi and her duck nodded as she followed Nami. I stared at the girl, _Why did I know her name? Is this like what happened with Sanji back on the Baratie?Jesus at this rate I'll never figure out who I was..._ I sighed.

We ended up next to the river, I spaced out, trying to sort everything in my head. _Oh lord... everything just gets more confusing the more I think about it!_ I shouted at myself, then remembered something.

"_Hey." Shanks smiled, "What's wrong?"_

_I frowned, "I'm not remembering anything, and when I think about what I do remember every thing just gets more confusing."_

_He laughed, "Oh, is that all?"_

"_What do you mean is that all?!" I shouted, "It means a lot to me!"_

"_Don't try and force the memories. Doc even told you that. The more stress you put on yourself the worse off you'll be." He pat my shoulder encouragingly, "Just let them come naturally and try not to dwell on it."_

I rubbed my head, "If only it were that easy!" I mumbled to myself.

Zoro explained the full situation to Luffy and Nami explained the contract to Vivi. I sat there awkwardly, feeling a hangover headache coming on.

"Oh! Why didn't you just say so, Zoro!" _He did..._ "I was figuring you just beat up all those guys because they didn't make any food you liked." Luffy laughed.

"WHO IN THEIR RIGHT MIND WOULD THINK THAT?!"

"Luffy would, apparently." I clicked my tongue. He wasn't the brightest person in the world.

He was still laughing, "What a funny mix up!"

"GUYS! SHUT UP!" We went silent at the navigator's shout. She turned to Vivi, "Well, there you have it. In exchange for taking you home, I'd like one Billion berries!" She smirked, "You saw how strong these guys are. If you ask me, it's not a bad deal."

"I can't." Vivi said simply, "But I appreciate the help you've given me so far."

I bit my lip.

"But why?" Nami asked, "You're a princess after all, so aren't you rich?"

The princess looked at Nami, "Do you know much about Alabasta Kingdom?"

I thought, "Uhm... My old captain told me a little bit about Alabasta... It used to be a great prosperous nation... but... Isn't it going through political trouble right now? A... civil war, right?"

Nami stared at me, "Does your old captain just know everything?"

_Shanks... know everything?_ I laughed so hard I thought my sides would split. "That's... That's insane! He just.." I fought to get my breath get back to normal, "He just knows a lot about the Grand Line, He's been in this sea for at least 22 years now."

"Whoa cool. He sailed when Gold Roger was sailing!" Luffy said excitedly, I hit him on the head.

"Yeah, but we have more important things to think about." I looked at Vivi, "Like what Alabasta has to do with Baroque Works, and why she was undercover."

Vivi stared at the ground. "Leanah is right, it used to be a very peaceful place... but in resent years... signs of discontent began to arise, people revolted, and the kindgom fell into utter chaos!" Vivi clenched her hands tighter, "Then one day I learned of a secret organization, Baroque Works!" She glared upwards, more at the sky than us. "I learned that they were manipulating our people, I wanted to find out all the information I could about them, so I went to Igaram for help, You see, he's kept a close eye on me since I was little."

Luffy made circles with his hands, "Old tube hair man?"

"Tube?" Vivi asked, slight confused before the odd description set in, "Oh, yes. I asked him if he would help me infiltrate Baroque Works so I could see who was pulling their strings behind the scenes and what exactly they were up too."

Zoro smiled, "You've got some guts considering you're a princess."

I looked at him, "Well, it doesn't take much effort of a woman to really disguise herself, I mean.." I took off my bandana and hair tie. Then retied the bandana around the bottom half of my face, put my hair in a bun and snatched a hat that was lying on the ground. "See? All you can see are my eyes. With Baroque Works now all I'd have to do is prove myself in a fight, work my way up the ladder and voila, instant infiltration."

He seemed to understand my point, he looked over to the princess. "So were you able to find out what their plan was?"

Vivi nodded, but Nami answered, "To create an ideal nation." She voice seemed more heavy now, "Anyway that's what Igaram said it was. Is that what you found out?"

"It's not." There was something behind Vivi's words, something I couldn't place, "That's just the cover story the boss was using. It's a lie to cover their tracks. Their true goal is to take over Alabasta Kingdom!" Finally I placed the emotion, anger, hatred for the person manipulating her people. "I have to get back and warn everyone! To tell them the truth and stop the fighting! If I don't do something... If I don't tell them..." She began to cry.

I walked over to her, "Hey... It's OK." I looked back at Nami, "We'll help, won't we?" It was more a statement than a question.

She sighed, "Alright I see how it is. Yeah, it's all starting to make sense now... I suppose you would have much money laying around during a civil war." The navigator crossed her arms.

Luffy leaned towards Vivi, "Hey. So did you find out who's in charge?"

Vivi gasped, "What?! The boss's identity!? You shouldn't ask that!" Everyone was- in some way- interested by her reaction.

"But you know don't you?" Luffy asked.

Vivi waved her arms, "Ask me anything but that! If I tell you then your lives will be put in danger too!"

Nami laughed uneasily, "Yeah, I'll pass, this guy is trying to take over an entire country after all." She forced a smile, "I don't want someone like that chasing after me, thank you."

"You don't." Vivi confirmed, "I don't care how strong you are, you wouldn't stand a chance against one of the seven warlords of the sea." _Well that narrows it down to seven people... and considering what I know about Hawk-eyes Mihawk I can safely assume it's not him, so tha-_ Vivi interrupted my thoughts, "Against Crocodile."

Beat.

"Who now?" Luffy asked.

I clapped. "Well that narrows it down nicely to one person." I said sarcastically.

"Ya had to say it." Zoro chastised.

A small noise from the top of the building behind us. I looked up. _A sea otter... and a... vulture?_ The sea otter jumped on the vulture's back and they flew off.

Nami began screaming at Vivi who apologized.

Luffy looked at Zoro and I with wide eyes, "Hey, a warlord? That's cool!"

Zoro smirked, "Not to bad."

I couldn't help but smile a little under my bandana, "Agreed, it'll be an interesting challenge."

Luffy laughed, he was genuinely excited about this development. Nami cried dramatically. "Being hunted by a warlord in the Grand line! That's more than I can handle!"

"It's no big deal," I said, trying to calm her down.

"So when do we get to see this guy?" Zoro asked.

"I wonder what he looks like!"

I sighed, adjusting my bandana but not taking it off.. _This hat is actually kind of nice.._ "Well, there are worse things." I smiled, "When we meet Crocodile I'll have met my second Warlord."

"SHUT UP YOU!" Nami shouted, then turned, walking away. "Been nice knowing you idiots! Thanks for everything!"

"Where are you going?" Luffy asked.

"They don't know what I look like yet!" She shouted back to us as the Sea Otter and Vulture landed in front of her, "I'm leaving!" She paused as the otter quickly sketched something and showed her four intricately detailed pictures. One of Nami, one of Luffy, and one of Zoro... _I assume the one of the person in the stetson and bandana is me..._ Really anything of note that might've actually identified me was covered, and my eyes were grey like the pencil led. Nami clapped, "Wow! They're so life like!" the sea otter and Vulture flew away again and Nami turned back to us, "No use in leaving now!"

"I'm really sorry." Vivi apologized again.

"She'll get over it." Luffy said.

"Where was she planning on going anyway?" Zoro asked.

"I really don't know.." I replied.

Zoro smiled, "Well then, it looks like the four of us are gonna be sitting at the very top of Baroque Works hit list."

Nami went into depression. Vivi knelt by her. "I do have 500 thousand berries in savings I could give you..."

I sighed, then a voice came from behind us, "You have nothing to fear." I turned around and was mentally scarred by Igaram dressed in an outfit similar to Vivi's holding four dummies. "It's-" He coughed, "Ma. Ma maa! It's going to be alright princess. I've come up with a plan."

Vivi stood up, walking up to the soldier, "Igaram? What are you-?"

Luffy got closer inspecting him and the dummies, "Heh, that's a really funny outfit, old guy."

I blinked, _I will never get this image out of my head... Jesus Christ..._ I rubbed my eyes, taking off my bandana in the process.

"My dear princess Vivi, listen to me carefully, once Baroque Works intelligence find out what happened here agents will be sent after you immediately. Since they're aware that you've learned the boss's true identity you must-"

"Yes. Knowing them they'll send a thousand agents after me." Nami came out of her depression and stared at Vivi in horror.

"Thus my plan. Disguised like this I will pretend to be you." Luffy poked one of the dummies under Igaram's arms, "I will take these four dummies on board with me and sail a straight course to Alabasta."

Luffy glanced up at Igaram. "So these things are us?"

Zoro nodded, finally getting the plan. "A decoy."

"While Baroque Works chase after me, the rest of you will head to Alabasta kingdom along a less direct route."

Nami stood up, "Hold on just a second!" She shouted, stomping over to us, "Who said we were gonna take her with us?!" Nami slumped angrily, "We still haven't discussed the matter of payment!"

Luffy looked lost, "Wait a second... payment for what? Take her where?"

I groaned, "Do you _ever_ pay attention to _anything_?"

"Seriously Luffy, Where've you been?" Zoro stood up, putting one hand in his hadamaki, and cradling his swords in the other, "The old man wants us to take the princess back home to her kingdom."

"Oh, is that what all this yelling is about?" The captain straightened up, "Sure thing."

I glanced at Nami, waiting for her response. "CROCODLIE MAY ALREADY BE AFTER US!" She screamed.

Luffy looked up at Igaram, "Is this Crocodile guy really that dangerous?"

Igaram looked down at Luffy, "As one of the seven warlords of the seas, he is a legally recognized pirate." I frowned _Isn't that kind of a contradiction?_ "Because of that fact there is no bounty on his head, but long ago his bounty was 80 million berries."

"Whoa."

"Eh, not the most impressive bounty in the world." I didn't exactly recall what Shanks's bounty was, but I was sure it was way _way __**way**_ over 80 million.

"80 MILLION?! THAT'S FOUR TIMES ARLONG'S BOUNTY!" Nami screamed, "THERE'S NO WAY!"

Igaram stared at Luffy, "Please do this for us."

Luffy smiled, putting his hands on his hips, "Sure. Sounds like it'll be fun."

The soldier nodded, smiling in gratitude. "Thank you, we are forever grateful."

I walked over and pat Nami on the back, "It's OK, I'm sure we'll be fine."

Nami looked over at me, crying, "But he's a warlord!"

"So?" I asked slowly leading her to the docks, "So are six other people, and... hell I know a whole crew of people who could easily take Crocodile on and come out with out a scratch!" I smiled at her, "Warlords? Hah! My old captain could drink a warlord under the table!" I paused. _Why did I choose __**that**__ as an example?_

"WHAT KIND OF ENCOURAGEMENT IS THAT!?" She shrieked.

"Sorry, it was the first strength that came to mind."

Nami cried more, "What kind of captain did you have that _DRINKING_ was the first strength you thought of?!"

_Red Haired Shanks apparently..._ I thought to myself as we came to a stop in front of a ship.

Igaram coughed. "Ma, ma.." He seemed to be making a conscious effort to raise his voice. "Maaa!" It worked... I guess. "Now I, Vivi," I couldn't take him seriously with the outfit _and_ the high girly voice, "Will leave from here."

Luffy laughed, "Great imitation, old guy."

I glared at Luffy.

"Imitation of _who_?" Zoro asked.

Vivi and Igaram stared at each other for a moment, Igaram held a hand out to Vivi, "Princess, please give me the Eternal Pose." Vivi pulled something from her pocket and handed it to him.

Nami tilted her head, "What's an Eternal Pose?"

The solider looked over at her, "Hm? You've never heard of it?"

"I have." I said, stepping forward. "It's a more permanent version of a Log Pose. Where a Log Pose can store magnetic fields and point from island to island, an Eternal Pose will only have one magnetic field and always point to one island... Right?"

Igaram nodded. "Yes." He held up the Eternal Pose in his hand, "For instance, this Eternal Pose will always point to Alabasta kingdom."

Vivi looked up at him, "Are you going to use this to set your course home?"

He nodded, "Princess Vivi, please take the indirect island hopping route to Alabasta. I myself have never been that way, but you should only have to pass through two or three islands if you follow the Log." He looked at Luffy, "Please take care of the princess in my absence."

"Yeah!" Luffy answered.

Vivi looked sad, "Igaram..."

The old man's face softened when he looked down at the princess, "I expect that your journey is going to be a difficult one, please.. be careful."

Vivi shifted forward slightly, "Iga..." She looked down, rethinking her good-bye. When she looked up again she was smiling, and she held a hand up to him, he took it. "See you soon."

"_Never say Good-bye." Yasopp said, staring me straight in the eyes, "That's far to final." He smiled, "'sides, I've got a feeling we'll meet again."_

_I laughed, "Right." I held a hand out to him, he took it, "Not good-bye. Just see ya later." He nodded in agreement._

I sighed, I had gotten way to attached to that crew... I was beginning to feel like my memories with them were all I needed.

Igaram boarded the ship with the four dummies and set sail. We watched him sail into the distance.

"And off he goes." Luffy said, holding his hat on the back of his head. "He was such a funny old man."

Vivi glanced back at Luffy then back out to the boat, "And what's more, he's a very reliable old man."

We all smiled, watching him get farther out to sea. A shiver shot down my spine and that prickly feeling settled on the back of my neck and I just _knew_ something bad was going to happen. I looked out to the ship in horror. "_No!_" I shouted just as it exploded.

The sound didn't even register at first, just a huge flash of light and a large breeze, then the sound hit like a crushing bolder.

_**BOOOOOOM!**_

We were all helpless to do anything but stand and watch.

"They're already after us!?" Nami shouted, "That's impossible!"

Luffy face grew dangerously dark as he walked back to pick up his hat that had blown off his head. He bent down and placed the treasured hat back on his head. He stood there for a moment, then broke off in a full run."

Zoro turned to the Navigator. "Nami! The Log?"

She looked at the Log Pose, "Uh! We're fine! It's all set!"

He turned slightly, "Get the girl, and come on." He looked at me, "Leanah, let's go!"

I nodded, "Right! I just need to grab some wood first! We ran out on the way here!"

Zoro growled, "Well hurry!"

"Alright!" I ran off, I know I had seen some worker's wood in one of the buildings, I hopped up on the roof and jumped, _Quick, quick, quick! They're right outside of town!_ I dropped down into a building and grabbed all the wood I could carry then booked it for the ship.

_Left here, right there, straight two houses. TURN! Docks straight a head!_ I went over the directions in my head, making sure I didn't ever accidentally take a wrong turn. I stopped in front of Merry. "Zoro! I need help!"

He held his arms out, "Toss it up!"

I did as was told and tossed the wood up to him, then boarded the ship myself. "Out of the way, Duck!" I said to Vivi's pet that was sitting on top of the hatch to the hold. He rerked at me then moved. "This is not how I expected this day to go." I said to Zoro, hurriedly putting the wood below deck.

"Tell me about it." He hoisted the anchor up.

"I got 'um!" I heard Luffy shout.

"Bring them up! We're ready to go!" Zoro shouted back. Then he got an odd look on his face.

"What?" I asked.

"Nothing, just roll out the ladder for Luffy, would ya?"

I nodded, grabbing the rope ladder and unrolling it down the side of the ship, then I saw why Zoro had looked so odd. Luffy was carrying Usopp by his nose, and Sanji by his foot. It was no wonder why they were passed out. "Jeeze."

"We don't have time to look for him!" Nami shouted.

"I'm not just going to leave him here." Vivi held her ground.

Zoro looked over at them, "Hey, what's the problem?"

Nami turned to him, "Apparently her duck 's gone missing, and now she's refusing to leave without him!"

The duck in question walked up between Zoro and I, we both pointed and at the same time said, "This duck?"

Then it was Nami and Vivi's turn for unison, "He's already here?!"

"He made it here before I did." Zoro said, going back to finishing sailing preperations.

"There's a tributary just up the river," Vivi explained as she boarded the ship, "If we take it we can get out to sea faster."

Luffy perched himself on his special seat, "Alright! Let's GO!" He shouted as the sail dropped open.

I sighed, leaning on the railing of the ship. I still felt that feeling on the back of my neck.

"Hey." Zoro said addressing Vivi.

The princess looked up at him, "Mr. Bushido..."

"How many people do you think Baroque Works will send after us?" He asked.

She looked down at the deck. "I'm not sure... I know there are about 2 thousand loyal employees in Baroque Works and I've heard that they're several bases like this one set up in the area."

Nami leaned over the railing, "They really might send a thousand people!?"

I stood over Sanji and Usopp, trying to revive them, it worked.

"Huh?" Sanji asked tiredly.

"Hey!" Usopp exclaimed as he came too. "The ship's leaving!"

Nami glanced back at us, "You're finally awake."

They crawled over to Nami, "Hold on a second, can't we stay just one more night?"

"One night!"

"This town is full of amazingly cute girls-"

"Who knows if we'll ever have this much fun again!"

"Even pirates deserve a vacation!"

"Come on!"

My eye twitched I was getting a little fed up with them. I stood up, "Shut it, you numbskulls!" I shouted walking over to them, "Whiskey Peak is a dangerous place! We couldn't have stayed if we wanted too!"

"But why Leanah!?" Usopp asked, "It was so much fun there!"

"And the women!"

Nami silenced their whining by hitting them on the heads.

"Nami, Leanah, could you explain the situation to them?" I heard Zoro shout.

"I just did," Nami said walking back to the railing.

"Okay.. That was fast."

The navigator smiled, "I left out the complicated parts."

I laughed, "Yeah." I walked down to the main deck and into the girl's room, removing the hat and hanging it on a chair. I popped open my suitcase and switched bandanas, keeping Shanks's one in my pocket rather than around my head. I looked at the package I had picked up from Crocus earlier that day. _I'll open it later._ I said to myself as I closed the suitcase.

"I'm just glad we got away from the people who were chasing us." A voice said as I emerged from below deck.

"That's for sure." Nami replied.

There was a short pause, "With all this fog we need to be careful to avoid the rocks."

"I'll take care of it, Leanah."

I blinked, "Uh.. Nami. I didn't say that."

The navigator turned to me sightly, "What?"

I shook my head, "I didn't say those things." The prickly feeling was still there, I turned slowly and saw someone sitting on the railing of the upper deck. She was wearing a dark kinda skimpy outfit and a black cowboy hat with a white rim.

"This ship is nice." The woman said. My hands shot to my swords, I was ready to draw.

"What?" Zoro exclaimed, "Who's that?!"

"It's... It's you!" Vivi said.

The dark woman chuckled, looking down at Vivi, "I just happened to run into your dear Mr. 8 a little ways back. He didn't look so good."

My chest seized. _It was her!_

"So it was you who killed Igaram!"

Luffy was off his perch and point at the woman, "You! What are you doing on my ship, and how did you get here?! Who are you!"

"Answer him!" Vivi shouted, "What are you doing here, Ms. All-Sunday!?"

I narrowed my eyes at Ms. All-Sunday, she didn't seem to have an ill will towards us. And that's what was so off putting about her.

Nami looked over at Vivi, "So you know who she is? Which of the number guys is she partnered with?"

I bit my lip, "Mr. 0... Crocodile." I whispered to myself. There was one more name at the tip of my tongue, in the front of my memory, I just couldn't get to it.

"Her partner is Mr. 0, the boss."

"GAH! Crocodile's her partner!?"

"She's a bad guy?" Luffy asked.

Vivi glared at Ms. All-Sunday, "She's the only one who knows the boss's true identity, that's how we found out who he really is. By following her back to him."

"To be accurate..." Ms. All-Sunday said coolly, "I allowed it."

"So.. She's a good guy then..."

"I know you knew we were there!" Vivi said, "You were the one who told the boss what we knew, weren't you?"

The agent smiled, "That's right."

Luffy pursed his lips, "Alright then, she is bad."

"Luffy, would you cut it out already?" Zoro whispered.

"She seems more neutral than just good or bad." I said.

Vivi stepped forward, "You still haven't told us what it is you're doing here!"

Ms. All-Sunday closed her eyes for a moment, "Oh, right. You were just all so serious about the whole thing I couldn't help myself. A princess doing what ever it would take to save her country, while making herself an enemy of Baroque Works... The idea was just so.. ridiculous."

Vivi looked angry, understandable considering that woman had just insulted Igaram who had twice given his life for her's today. "YOU KILLED HIM!" She screamed.

And everyone had their weapons out and trained on Ms. All-Sunday. Even Usopp and Sanji were awake.

"Sanji.. uhm... you do realize what you're doing here right?" Usopp asked and he held his sling shot, ready to fire.

"Nope." The chef said, pointing a gun at the agent's head, "Not a clue, I just know that the beautiful Ms. Wednesday needs me."

She sighed, "I would really appreciate it if..." I felt something, "Stop pointing those at me." That something slapped my hands, making me drop my swords. I looked up at her.

"No way!"

"You mean-?"

"She's eaten a-?"

"Devil fruit!"

"But which one? What's her power?"

Sanji sat up from the deck, glaring up at the woman, then his glare turned to hearts, "Wow! Now that I get a look, you're beautiful!"

She looked down, "Now there's no need to get so excited. You can all calm down, I haven't been given any orders to follow here. I have no reason to fight you." Luffy jerked forward as his hat went flying off of his head and straight into Ms. All-Sunday's hand. "So you're the captain, I've heard so much about you, Monkey D. Luffy."

Luffy went into a rage, "GIVE ME MY HAT BACK! DO YOU WANT ME TO COME UP THERE AND TAKE IT!" He screamed at the top of his lungs.

Usopp slipped behind the mast, "You are a bad person I demand you leave this instant!"

She placed the hat gently over her own. "Bad luck. Picking up a princess who Baroque Works has already made up their mind to see eliminated, protected my a mere handful of pirates." She folded her hands over her knees. "And your luck gets even worse, because of the direction your Log Pose is indicating, you see?" Nami looked down at the Log Pose on her arm, "The name of the next island... is Little Garden. We won't even need to lift a finger, you'll all be dead long before you reach Alabasta."

"MY HAT! GIVE IT TO MEEEEEE!" The captain shouted again.

"I told you to leave now! Evil... doer!"

"Evil doer? Seriously?" Zoro was unimpressed with Usopp.

"You don't think that's a little foolish?" She asked, tossing Luffy's hat down along with an Eternal Pose. "Allowing yourselves to be wiped out?"

The hat landed on Luffy's head and the Eternal Pose landed in Vivi's hands. "An... Eternal Pose?"

"Using that you can just skip right passed Little Garden without stopping, straight to an island near Alabasta. The Pose points to a place known as Nanimonaishima, none of our agents know that course so you won't be followed."

There was a pause, "What?" Nami asked, "So she's good after all?"

"Why are you giving this to us?" Vivi asked.

"It's gotta be a trap." Zoro reasoned.

I narrowed my eyes at her, "I... don't think it is..." I said honestly.

"Your friend there has it right, Mr. Swordsman."

Luffy slowly walked across the deck to Vivi, "Forget your thingy." He said grabbing the Eternal Pose from Vivi, "We don't need it!" He crushed it in his hand.

Nami round house kicked him to the face, "YOU JERK! SHE JUST WENT OUT OF HER TO SHOW US AN EASIER COURSE TO FOLLOW!" Nami pointed at Ms. All-Sunday, "MAYBE SHE ACTUALLY IS TRYING TO HELP US GET AWAY!"

Luffy just stayed there on the deck, then looked over at the agent, "You aren't the one who decides where this ship goes." They stared at each other for a while, then she smiled.

"Well, that's too bad."

Nami groaned at Luffy, he just sat up, "She blew up that funny old man who was nice so now I hate her." His logic was simple.

Ms. All-Sunday nodded, then turned so she could walk along the upper deck, "I'm sorry to hear that, and I'm sorry you didn't accept my offer," She paused, "If you survive, I hope we meet again."

"No!" Came the captain's stubborn reply.

Ms. All-Sunday chuckled and jumped off the side of the boat, "Let's go, Banchi."

I ran over and looked over the railing, "That's kinda cool!"

"Wh- what is that thing?" Zoro asked.

"It isn't a Sea King is it?" Usopp sounded as brave as ever, "No..."

Everyone was looking now, and we all came to the same conclusion, "Whoa! A turtle!"

"Oh, wow! That thing is huge!" Luffy said watching it swim off into the distance.

I looked at Vivi, she stared blankly for a moment before collapsing to her knees, "That woman! I don't even have the slightest idea what's going through her head!"

"And there's no point in thinking about it is there?" Nami asked.

"And there's someone on this boat who's just like that," Zoro said, possibly referring to Luffy.

"Would someone explain what's going on?! None of this makes sense!" Usopp shouted.

Sanji was by Vivi's side in an instant, "Oh, Ms. Wednesday have you joined our crew?" He asked in that love sick way she spoke to all women.

"HEY! EXPLAIN ALREADY!" Usopp shouted as Vivi's duck appeared next to him, "Whoa! Who's ostrich is this? Please! What's going on?"

The duck wrerked, then Sanji got serious, "Are we fighting for food or women?"

Usopp grabbed my arm, "Tell me! Tell me now!"

I shook the Sharp shooter off of me, "FINE! Jesus!" I shook my head, "Sanji, be a dear and go get me a glass of wine, please."

He smiled, "Of course, Leanah!" He danced to the kitchen then came back a little while later with a glass full of wine, "Here you are, mademoiselle." I took it from him.

"Thank you." I sat down. "Whiskey Peak was a town full of bounty hunters," I took a sip, "That party they threw for us was to drop our defenses so they could take Luffy in alive to get his bounty money and rob us all of our stuff."

"But... didn't you pass out from alcohol?" Sanji asked, lighting a cigarette. "I somewhat remember you ranting about beating Zoro."

I nodded, "It was an act, I felt like something was up, Zoro and Nami apparently had the same idea."

Hearts everywhere, "Well of course you and Nami figured it out! You're both so smart!"

"Chs. I didn't see you out there fighting any of the 100 bounty hunters."

"Shut it, moss head!"

"Dart brow!"

"Shitty swordsman!" Sanji stood up, glaring at Zoro.

"Love sick cook!" Zoro just barely unsheathed one of his swords.

"Girls! Girls! You're both pretty!" I shouted at them, "May I get back to my explanation now?"

Zoro glared at me, but sheathed his sword again, and Sanji was facing forward.

I sighed, "Thank you. Anyway, Zoro fought the Bounty hunters, I picked up the slack..." I continued to explain the entire story to Usopp and Sanji.

After I was done Sanji stood up again, "Oh, I see. It's too bad I missed out on all the fun, but it sounds like there will be plenty of demand for my skills." He looked at Vivi, "No need to worry, now that your sleeping prince has awoken, my sweet, you will be safe."

"Whoa!" Usopp said, he blinked, "Glad that wasn't me!"

I sighed, glancing between Sanji and Vivi. The chef turned to me, "My dear, are you getting jealous?"

"No." I said flatly.

"Not even a little?" He teased.

"If I got jealous of you fawning over other girls I would've left the Baratie a _whole_ lot sooner than I did."

"Excuse me..." Vivi started, "I'm sorry but is it really all right that I'm on your ship? I'm just causing you all a lot of trouble."

"It's a little late for apologize don't you think? Nami asked as she walked over and poked Vivi's forehead, "If you didn't want to cause us trouble you shouldn't have told us who you were."

"Mmm.. Sorry about that..."

"Isn't that right, Luffy?" Nami asked.

He threw his fists in the air, "Yeah! I'm hungry too!"

Zoro sighed, "Well, at least now we know we know where we're headed..."

"Yeah..." Sanji stared out at the waves. "Little Garden..."

"Did you hear what she said?" Usopp asked, quivering, "Are we gonna die?"

Luffy laughed, "Who knows? But.. Let's go, pirates!"

The crew let out a "right." of varying degrees of excitement.

I rubbed my eyes, "It is around breakfast time..." I looked at Sanji, "Would you mind?" I asked. He walked into the kitchen. I leaned back, staring at the waves. "I've been a member of this crew for exactly two days now... I've been up a 10 thousand meter high mountain, eaten by a West Blue Island Whale, sailed through a Grand Line super storm, confronted by 100 bounty hunters, and am now marked for death by a company run by a warlord." I pursed my lips, "Could be worse. I could be dead." The rest of the crew (except Luffy and Sanji) sweat dropped.

**Author's Note:**

And we're off to Little Garden! Woot! Oh the fun they will have, And I hope as you will all notice, Baroque Works does not actually know what she looks like. This will come in handy for later. Next chapter is sailing towards Little Garden and the reveal of what Shanks gave her. My mind is focused on Alabasta right now, there's a development in Leanah and Luffy's way of thinking towards each other, and it's catalyst is because of a person and another person! (Not in the way you're probably thinking, but still.)

Oh! And if you haven't noticed, I've been putting the next chapter title up on my profile. So if you wanna know the next Chapter title, you now know where to look.

Your ever willing Author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	28. On wards! To Little Garden!

After breakfast the crew seemed to settle into a usual routine. Zoro lounging on the railing, swords propped next to him while he slept, Usopp working on a new super secret weapon, Luffy on his perch, Nami and Vivi were chatting about the Grand Line, and the plan for Alabasta, I had been helping Sanji with the dishes before he insisted he could do it himself.

I sighed and went to the girl's room, Sanji had apparently noticed how much I like wine and taken the time to set up a mini winery in the room. I smiled, but ignored the wine for now. I let my sights on my suitcase, popping it open. It was time to find out what exactly it was Shanks left me.

I took the box in my hands, carefully opening the top and peering inside. I frowned at the thing inside slowly pulling it out. Another note rested below it.

I blinked at the Eternal Pose in my hands, then set it down and pulled out the note.

_Leanah,_

_This is where you'll find us 9 times out of 10._

_We'd all be glad to have you back anytime._

_Shanks._

I folded the note up and stared at the Eternal Pose. The name along the top read Saffron. _Heh._ I laughed, sticking the Pose back in my suitcase. _Thanks... but no thanks, I've got my own crew to look after now._ I shut the suitcase and went back up on deck.

"We've lost the wind again." Nami said, staring at our flat sail, "At this rate it'll take us forever just to reach Little Garden. We won't be moving for while."

"We're running out of time..." Vivi said. "We need to go."

I smiled, "Stop worrying, Vivi," I gave her a thumb's up, "We'll get you to Alabasta in no time."

Nami pat her back, "Yeah, the wind'll pick up soon."

Luffy hopped from his perch, "Right! Now it's time to fish!"

Vivi's duck- who's name is Carue as I have been informed- warked in agreement.

Sanji walked out with the bail bucket. "Hey guys, do any of you know where the bait went."

I frowned, "Last I saw it full, Luffy was by it."

The captain walked over and looked in the bucket, "The bait? Oh, you mean the stuff in there? Yeah... I ate that."

"Ewww!" I shivered, "Those were _bugs_!"

Luffy reached in and picked up what I assumed was the last of the bait and stuck it in his mouth. "I know. They were good."

I clonked him on the back of his head, making him spit out the bait, "Don't eat worms Luffy!"

"Euck! That's gross!"

Sanji had a tick mark on his head, "Well done, how are we supposed to fish now that you've scarfed down all of our bait?"

"Try using this." The captain held up a burr.

"We can't fish with that!"

He dropped the burr and looked up slightly, "Those are some picky fish..."

I wrapped and arm around Luffy's head and twisted, "You've eaten all of our bait! Now what do you do!?" I let go and his head spun until it was back to its normal position.

The slightly dizzy captain pointed to Carue. "How about him?"

Sanji inspected the duck. "That could work..."

Carue reacted in horror and began running around the deck to get away from Luffy and Sanji.

"HEY!"

"Get back here!"

I chased as well, "No! Guys you cannot use Carue for bait!"

We circled the deck twice before Carue swerved only to step on an unsuspecting Zoro. The Swordsman did not take kindly to such a rude awakening, "OW! Dammit! Knock it off, you guys!"

Our navigator sighed, "I suppose it's to much to ask..." She slammed her hands on the railing of the upper deck, "FOR YOU GUYS TO BE WORRIED!"

"What should we be worried about?"

"Ah! You're simply beautiful when you're angry, Nami!"

"Come on!"

Vivi crossed her arms, "It just seems odd, for someone with a 30 million berry bounty on his head your straw hat captain sure doesn't seem to be a particularly terrifying pirate."

I started trying to pull Luffy off Carue, "Ain't that the truth!"

Nami laughed, "I know it's really hard to imagine, but he's actually beaten some really big names out there, like Arlong, the fishman who was determined to rule the East Blue, and Don Krieg, the pirate commodore. Also Kuro, a mysterious pirate who was notorious for his cunning."

I tapped my foot, letting go of Luffy, "And that Buggy the clown guy..." Luffy, Nami, and Zoro stared at me, I looked around then rubbed the back of my head, "Well, I'm assuming that was Luffy, I just heard someone uprooted Buggy from where ever he was."

Zoro sat back in a relaxed way, "You left one out."

"Huh?"

"That freak marine captain who had an ax for a hand..."

"Oh yeah! Ax-hand Morgan!" Nami smiled.

"_The_ Ax-hand Morgan?" She looked at Luffy in awe, "From what I know, he's feared by sailors throughout the East Blue for his strength and cruelty." I glanced back at the captain only to see him, Usopp and Sanji restraining Carue. "You're saying that Luffy even beat him?"

Luffy paused in getting the rope around the duck and smiled at Vivi, "Right, the old ax hand man!" He dropped the rope completely, looking up at the sky, "Speaking of the old ax hand man, I wonder what that kid who was with him is up too these days..."

"Huh?" Usopp said glancing at Luffy and allowing Carue a chance to escape.

"Hm... I wonder if he's still at the marine base?"

The wind returned, "Who do you mean?" Nami asked.

"Oh. His name's Coby, he's a friend of mine from way back." Luffy smiled.

And really nothing else of note happened that day, other than Nami telling us we would arrive in Little Garden in two days.

And the day after that was at least a little more interesting depending on if you like me being between a rock and a hard place. The day started as most would, Zoro and I were the first ones awake, We would possibly spar, or just critique each other's styles, then Nami, Vivi, or Usopp would filter on afterward, and Sanji would come out and make breakfast and Luffy would bound out of the cabin.

I sighed, then turned to Zoro, "Hey, Do you have any polish? I used the last of mine in Lougetown."

"Hm? Oh, yeah." He reached into a pocket I had not been previously aware of and tossed it at me.

I caught it and sat down next to him, "Thanks."

"No problem." I slowly went about polishing Ami and Ana. After a long moment Zoro said, "Who was the first Warlord you saw?"

I looked at him, "Huh?"

"You said back in Whiskey peak that Crocodile will be the second Warlord you've seen. Who was the first?"

I blinked at him. "Uhhh..." I leaned back, "Hey Sanji! Need an help in the kitchen?"

"No, but that you for offering, Leanah dear!"

I twitched, _Dammit Sanji, I'm in distress right now! Be the heroic prince and save me!_ "Are you sure?!"

"Very!"

I cursed then focused on polishing my swords.

"You didn't answer the question." The swordsman sat up, staring at me, "Who was the first?"

"I don't remember!" I said hastily.

Silence.

Zoro's stare briefly turned into a glare before he stood up, leaving me to polish my swords alone. _God! How could I just let something like that slip! Jesus, am I trying to give myself away?_ I thought angrily.

"Hey! Who are you calling delusional?!" Usopp shouted from another part of the ship, he was also banging on something which Nami was not pleased by.

"GUYS! KNOCK IT OFF! SERIOUSLY, CAN'T YOU BE QUIET FOR ONE SECOND!"

"Leanah!" Sanji called, "Your dessert is ready!"

_Oh. __**Now**__ you call me in!_ I stood up, sheathing my swords and leaving the polish on the deck. I entered the kitchen to find Usopp attempting to eat my dessert. I hit him, "_My_ dessert!"

Sanji pointed, "Usopp, your dessert is over _there_." Usopp ran over and quickly ate his dessert. There was a distinct lack of usual cries of the captain about food. "Where's Luffy?" The chef asked.

"Hm?" Nami looked up at Sanji, "Oh, I sent him to go use that water drawing machine to draw some water for my shower."

I blinked, "You... You sent _Luffy_?" I almost couldn't believe it. "Nami, you sent Luffy, **_Luffy_**, To go use our _very breakable_ water drawing machine?"

She shrugged, "He may be an idiot, but he can't be-"

_**CHASH!**_

"You were saying?" We all ran out on deck to see Luffy.

"That thing is kind of scary..." He said, glancing back at the smoking water drawing machine.

"Luffy!" Usopp shouted. "Look what you did! You broke it!"

"What? It's not my fault, I was just trying to draw water faster!"

Usopp tinkered with the broken machine, "This is bad. The belt's broken." He tinkered with it some more, "And it's burned up!"

"Yeah, strange, huh."

Nami hopped down next to the captain and his him, "No it's not, considering your freakish strength."

"Can it be fixed?" Vivi asked.

"Yeah.." Usopp said, shutting the door behind him. "We need to stop somewhere and get the materials..."

Nami glared at Luffy, "For now anyway it's probably better if I don't ask Luffy to try it again."

"I do it." I volunteered, I wanted to do something to get my mind off of every thing.

Nami shook her head, "Nah, Thanks for offering Leanah. Usopp," She walked over to the Sharp shooter, "Could you draw me some water with the other water drawing machine? I still need water for my shower."

He sighed, "Yeah." Then he blinked, "Hey wait! Leanah volunteered to do it so why do I have to? Or better yet, do it yourself!"

Nami paused, staring down at Usopp, "I'm not making Leanah do it because she _actually_ helped at Whiskey Peak. Now stop whining and hop to it!"

Luffy looked up at the kitchen, "Hey... I can smell food!"

Usopp got in his face, "And you, can't you at least say you're sorry?!"

"Alright I'm sorry, but we've got another one so what's the big deal?"

"When you break something it's only polite to say you're sorry!"

"Will you two shut up, I'm trying to get some sleep!"

I sighed, _Three days... It feels like four months!_

Vivi looked up, "Oh, Hey Nami, look."

I looked up as well. There was a bird perched on the mast of our ship. It seemed to be carrying something.

"Oh, it's the newspaper!" The navigator waved the bird, down and gladly traded a coin for a paper, the three of us entered the kitchen followed by Carue, Sanji, Luffy, and eventually Zoro.

I sat down to finish my dessert as Nami and Vivi settled on either side of me, Luffy and Zoro across from us.

"Honestly, I can't believe the morning paper doesn't get here until noon!" Nami complained as she flipped through the paper.

Vivi fed part of her dessert to Carue, "Well it certainly can't be easy delivering a paper on time in the Grand Line, We should really just be thankful we get the newspaper at all, you know."

Nami smiled oddly, "I guess that is true, huh?"

I looked over at her, "Read a few headlines would you?" I asked between bites.

"Sure." She scanned down the page, "One of the four pirate emperor's heard boasting about former crew mate." I choked on what I was eating as Nami looked at Vivi. "Pirate emperor?"

Vivi frowned, "The pirate emperors are four of the worlds most dangerous pirates, it's assumed that they all turned down offers to become Warlords and are now locked in a never ending power struggle in the second half of the Grand Line." Carue at the rest of her dessert and she pat his head. "It's safe to assume that who ever that emperor was boasting about is someone very strong, and probably very dangerous."

I slowly covered my face. _That __**idiot!**_ I cursed internally.

"_Shanks... what exactly is it that you __**do**__?" I asked one night._

_He smiled, "Well, I'm a pirate, of course, so I pillage and plunder."_

"_Be serious." I said to him as he handed me a glass of beer._

"_I'm one of the Four Pirate Emperors of the New World."_

"_And that means...?"_

_Shanks grinned evilly, "Well, all you need to know is that you're sailing with a very dangerous man." He laughed maniacally, downing his own glass of beer._

"_Ha. Ha." I said sarcastically, drinking the glass slowly._

"Leanah? Are you alright?" Zoro asked.

I nodded, "Yeah... I just... I've heard horror stories about the pirate emperors." I frowned, "They can be terrifying people... or so I've heard." I pushed my unfinished dessert mid-way between Luffy and Zoro, "You can have the rest of that," I looked over at Nami, "Read some more."

Nami scanned through the paper some more, then she stopped, reading one article fully, carefully, and worriedly. Vivi glanced at her, "Did you find something else interesting in there?"

"Ah! Oh, no it's nothing, really." She quickly flipped to the next page.

I blinked, _What did you see, Nami?_ I asked in my head, _What would've shaken you so much that you act that defensive?_ I sighed, propping my elbow up on the table.

Luffy stuffed the entire dessert in his mouth, then saw something in the paper that caught his attention, he slammed his hands on the table, leaning towards Nami. "MMRRMM!"

Nami looked back at him, shocked, then realized he was reacting to paper, "Oh, What is it?" She asked, holding the paper slightly over a bit.

"Hold on a sec!" Luffy said after he had swallowed his mouth full of food, "Zoro come check this out!"

"Hm?" The swordsman set the cup he was drinking down.

"At what? It's just a picture of some marine guy." I twisted, trying to get a look at the picture.

"Yeah, but it isn't just any marine guy they took a picture of!" Zoro leaned over to try and get a look at the picture as well.

"Heh.. That's Coby, right?"

"Yeah!"

"Coby?" Nami asked, turning to the captain, "He's that friend you were talking about the other day?"

"Yep! So what's the paper say about him?"

"Let me see..." Nami carefully inspected the article, "Vice-Admiral Garp arrives with his crew at marine head quarters, the picture show here was taken just after they crossed Reverse Mountain. Garp, of course was relaxed and in control, some young marines didn't fair as well as their commander, however, they sat huddled together on the deck, their faces frozen in fear."

"Whoa... So Coby's here in the Grand Line too!"

"And it said marine head quarters, not bad for the kid." Zoro sat back, smiling.

"Right! Coby's gonna be a marine mayor, one of these days!"

I frowned, "Don't you mean officer?"

"He does mean officer." Zoro confirmed, then glared at Luffy, "Marine's don't have mayors, idiot!"

"Yeah, that's what I said," Luffy grabbed his hat, "This is great! I bet Coby is working really hard right now!"

I smiled, "I bet. Could you imagine the beating he's getting? Between the heavy work load he could get at being under the scrutiny of Vice-Admiral Garp..." I sighed, "It takes a lot of dedication to put up with that kind of treatment..." I felt someone stare at me, I didn't need to look to know who it was. I stood up, "Well... I have to go finish polishing my swords." I turned leaving the kitchen and returned to my spot on the upper deck.

I settled into a smooth motion, carefully making sure I got every spot, I glanced up.

Zoro was glaring at me, it was a look that said _I'm on to you._

"If you've got something to say.." I said, looking back down at my swords, "Then don't just stand there like a creep and say it." I was only keeping a calm façade, I was about ready to spontaneously combust underneath.

He just humphed and moved to another part of the ship, presumably to train. I sighed, my shoulders slumping.

"Christ..." I don't even know what I should've felt more guilty about, that I had lied about Kuina or that I was keeping my past with Shanks and Mihawk a secret.

The rest of the day passed with me avoiding Zoro like the plague and hiding out in the girl's room. Thank god Sanji put in that mini winery.

I was six and a half drinks in, sitting in front of Nami's desk when Vivi came down to check on me.

"Leanah?"

I looked up at the princess. "Yeah?"

"I have some questions.." Vivi sat down on the bed.

I set down my half empty glass of wine, "Shoot."

"You... called me Vivi before we arrived in Whiskey Peak.."

I rubbed my eyes, "I know... and that's been bothering me too..." I looked up at here, "You see, I can't give you an explanation for that. I wish to god I could, but I've had amnesia for a while now... The same thing happened when I first met Sanji."

"Oh..." Vivi stared down at the floor, "I'm-"

"If you're about to apologize, don't bother." I smiled at her, finishing my half a glass, "It's not your fault I have amnesia."

She nodded, "Right. So-" She smiled apologetically, "Whoops."

I laughed, "Don't worry, now you should get above deck, It's a lovely day out there, I'm just down here trying to sort things out."

Vivi walked back out onto the deck, leaving me alone again.

I blinked tiredly, putting the glass away and passing out in the chair.

I faintly heard a noise, then felt something touch my shoulder, "Hm?" I looked up at Nami who was holding a finger over her lips. She placed a paper the paper in front of me, pointing to an article. There had been a power shift in Alabasta. The rebel forces were now bigger than the royal army. This was a problem. I glanced down at the soundly sleeping princess. This was a problem she didn't need, not after Igaram.

I nodded and Nami opened the draw of the desk silently and slipped the paper inside, I closed the drawer. We shared a glance.

"_Vivi doesn't need to know what's happened."_ Nami mouthed.

"_Agreed."_ I replied, _"Now go back to sleep, we've got a big day tomorrow."_

She nodded and tiptoed back to her bed and sliding under the covers. I laid my head back down on the desk. Something big was going to happen on Little Garden, and I had a feeling I wasn't going to like it.

**Author's Note:**

Teehee. I'm such a mean person! I have so many good ideas planned that only make Leanah's life worse! There's a moment when you love a character and you only want the best for them, and then you put them through unimaginable horrors just to make them better people/stronger. Ah, but those are the best days to be an Author... Anyway, I love your reviews, keep them coming!

Your ever willing Author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	29. Sanji vs Zoro, Leave me out of it!

Another day of perfect sailing weather, strong winds, warm breezes and little distractions.

I focused on the weight Zoro had let me borrow. Things were still tense between the swordsman and me, I predicted it would stay that way until I found some way to wane suspicion off of me. The only problem was that I had no idea how to do that.

Luffy stared up at the sky. "Aw. No snow, too bad."

Zoro glanced up at him, "Snow, in this climate?"

The captain looked down at him, "Sure, it already happened once."

"You were blissfully asleep while it happened." I said, switching the weight from my right hand to my left.

Luffy looked at Vivi, "Hey, what about you, do you think it's gonna snow?"

"I wouldn't rule anything out, but the sea you were in the first time it happened was special." She frowned, "The seven magnetic fields that Reverse mountain emits tends to make things particularly chaotic." She looked out at the sea, "But don't let your guard down in these waters, the odds of it being as wild as your first journey may be small, but these waters are different and dangerous in their own right. Remember, never underestimate the sea."

Sanji came down from the kitchen, "Hey, who wants to try my special drink?"

Carue ran up behind the chef, I threw up a hand, jumping down to the lower deck, followed by Luffy and Zoro. I took a cup from the tray and took a sip, It was some sort of sparkling water. I smiled, "This is good."

Vivi slammed her hands on the railing looking down at us.

"Hey, do you guys wanna get out the fishing gear?" Luffy asked, getting smiles from Zoro and Usopp.

"Fishing, hell yeah. I'm in."

"Sounds good to me, I'll even make you one of my custom fishing rods, you'll love it!"

I shook my head, "Count me out, I'm going to train a bit more before we reach the island."

Carue didn't quite understand how his straw worked, he bit the end, but then lifted it up. Wrerking when nothing really happened, Sanji knelt down, "No, like this." He adjusted the straw in the duck's mouth so it was in the glass. After Carue figured out what was going on he drank the drink in one fell swoop. Sanji smiled, "Well, since you're so thirsty, have another." He placed another drink in front of Carue.

I stood up, walking back up to the upper deck as Carue continued drinking until Sanji had run out of glasses to give the duck. Nami was exiting the kitchen which she had turned into her navigator's quarters until we reached the island. I saw that she hand some drinks as well.

Vivi pointed down at the male entirety of our crew, "They're acting like idiots!" I stopped at the top of the stairs, looking at her.

"Here, Vivi," Nami said holding one of the drinks out to the princess, "Maybe this will help. Just relax. These boys may go through idiot phases but when things get rough they get to work." She smiled, "Trust me, I should know."

"Sorry," Vivi apologized, "I don't know what's wrong with me. I'm getting worked up over nothing."

I shrugged, "Well, to be fair you're from a desert kingdom and we are sort of wasting water with that little 'see how much the duck can drink' contest."

Nami smiled wider, "This ship will put you at ease, you'll cheer up in no time!"

I glanced down at them, Carue had apparently had his fill and was now a water spout. Luffy and Usopp were laughing like crazy. I chuckled and picked up the weight again, this weight was 25 Kilos, making it 55 pounds, and I was adjusting to using it. I felt disbelieve rolling off of Zoro when I told him I couldn't pick up his 100 kilo weight, or his 70 kilo weight, and could only just barely lift his 50 kilo weight.

Nami and I both smiled at the princess, and for the first time since the day started, she smiled aw well, "Yeah... they're... funny."

Things got quiet on the ship until we heard something break the water not far away.

"Hey, look! It's a dolphin, a pirate's best friend." Sanji said, admiring the creature.

I tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear, looking up from the weight. "Yeah..."

"Oh wow. It's beautiful!" Nami said.

I bit my lip as the dolphin came closer. "I don't think that's normal dolphin.."

I was right. The dolphin jumped over us, e crew let out one simultaneous, "It's huge!"

After it broke water again Luffy thrust a hand in the air, "LET'S GOOOO!" I dropped the weight as the others dropped their glasses.

"Move it!" Zoro shouted.

"Right!"

"On it!"

"Kay."

Sanji took the lower ropes, Usopp took the upper ropes, Zoro had the steering, I had watch. "STARBOARD!" I shouted, "IT'S OFF THE STARBOARD SIDE!"

Merry groaned as she slowly turned.

Usopp had come down from the mast and was taking one side of the lower ropes, he pointed, shouting to Sanji, "Get the other side!"

"Yeah! I got it!" Sanji shouted back.

Vivi watched us in amazement, "She... was right."

Luffy stood beside me, "Okay! Hurry, Let's MOOOOVVEEE!" The dolphin jumped again, "Alright! It's gonna be a big one!"

The dolphin landed in the water right behind us, creating a wave that we expertly rode for a sizable distance.

"WOOOO!"

After the wave had dissipated Luffy was standing on the lower deck looking up at Nami, "Nami! Which way now?"

"Give me a second, I'll check." She looked at the Log Pose on her arm, she smiled, "Port side! Full!"

"Turning full!"

Merry turned port, I squinted, "Hey..." There seemed to be an island on the horizon

Luffy jumped on his perch, holding his hat in place.

Nami lifted the Log Pose so that she could make sure that the island was the correct one. "There's no mistake. Cactus Island and this one are definitely pulling against each other." Nami pointed to the island, "Our next stop!" She declared.

"So that's Little Garden..." I said, smiling slightly.

"ALRIGHT! This is it! Our second island on the Grand Line!" Luffy shouted excitedly.

Everyone was gathered at the front of the ship as we sailed around looking for someway inland. I looked around, _Little? Everything I'm seeing is huge! There's nothing little here!_

"I can see why they call this place Little Garden." Luffy said, inspecting the foliage we could see.

"I can't." Zoro said, crossing his arms, "What's little about it?"

"Exactly.." I said, that feeling from the night before returning full force.

"Yeah, this island looks pretty harsh if you ask me." Nami said, "Why the cute name?"

Usopp was shaking so hard you could hear him, "Y- Yeah. M- Maybe we'd be better off skipping this island."

Vivi gently pet Carue's head, "We have to be careful..." She said softly, "I can't help but remember the warning Ms. All-Sunday gave us..."

I looked down, _That was a little ominous wasn't it? I know I shouldn't trust what that woman said, but we'd better approach this as if everything she said was true..._

"So.. what? We might be attacked by giant monsters?!" Usopp was completely terrified now.

Luffy laughed, "Who knows?"

"Listen," Usopp turned to Luffy, "I'm sure we can make it to the next island with out going ashore on this one!"

"I'm sure we can't," I put in my two cents, "The Grand Line currents could take us any direction, and we don't have a compass other than the Log Pose, which is useless unless we get this islands magnetic field registered."

Nami nodded, "We need to go ashore."

"Not to mention we're in dire need of restocking our food supply." Sanji added, "We didn't get so much as a sack of flour in the last town."

"Guys, there's our ticket in." Zoro said as he pointed to a small tributary.

We turned the ship into the tributary and began going inland.

"Think they'll have a BBQ restaurant here?" Luffy asked hopefully.

"We didn't travel all this way for BBQ!" Sanji shouted at the captain.

Luffy looked a little sad, "I thought the point of this visit was to get food."

I rubbed my forehead, "Not that _kind_ of food, Luffy."

"Waddya mean? Food is food, right?"

"Food as is supplies we're going to cook later." He took a drag from his cigarette. "Jeeze, what are you thinking?"

I shook my head, "I don't think I want to know what Captain is thinking..."

Nami had been expertly ignoring us, she walked over to the railing, "I donno... Usopp might be right about this one..." She pointed to the shore, "I mean look at the plant life here. I've never seen anything like it. Not even in books."

There was a strange bird call from the island, high and shrill, the worst possible combination. I covered my ears, "Gah! That noise!"

"Ahhh~ You're so adorable!"

Usopp turned around, winking at Sanji, "Thank you."

"THAT'S NOT FUNNY! I was talking to Nami and Leanah!"

The navigator looked out at the forest, "What was that screeching?"

Sanji smiled, raising a hand, "It's alright, dear, just a bird, nothing to worry about," He was completely oblivious to the absolutely _huge_ bird flying up behind him. "Just like this jungle."

Nami and Usopp took several steps back, I dropped to a fighting stance and had a hand on Ami.

"Uh... What's wrong?"

"Sanji, behind you!" I shouted as the bird got closer.

He turned and was able to dodge just in time to miss the bird's claws. It flew off, he stood up again turning to face the retreating creature, "What the hell's the matter with you, ya damn bird!?"

Luffy stared at it as well, "Whoa, it's big... could be tasty..."

_**BOOOOOOOOOM!**_

Nami stared out into the now misty jungle in horror, "Hear that? Is that a noise you expect to hear in a normal jungle?"

_cannon fire?_ I thought to myself, _No... There's no way, we would have seen them with an explosion that loud... something bigger than a cannon? A Volcano?_

Usopp covered his eyes, "That sounded like a Volcano erupting! We're all going to diiiiee!"

I sighed, "Stop being so over dramatic, it didn't sound like a substantial explosion, so it's possible that either the Volcano wasn't quite ready to fully erupt or it's not a vary large volcano, really we have nothing to fear." Usopp knees shook in response. I rolled my eyes, then looked forward again.

We sailed a little more inland, a large growl signaled a giant tiger coming up to prowl next to the ship.

"A tiger!" Nami said, staring at it in horror.

"It's gigantic!" Usopp said as the pair retreated to the other side of the ship.

I squinted at it, it didn't look like it had ill will towards us... more like it was in pain. Then in coughed up blood and keeled over. Nami ran back over, "What?" She briefly looked to Luffy and me, "What just happened?"

"It... died." I said slowly.

"I know normal, and this is definitely not it!" Nami exclaimed, "Someone explain to me how a mammoth tiger can just keel over covered in blood?"

Usopp was sweating bullets, he nodded slowly, then looked up, "LOG POSE AND FOOD BE DAMNED! WE'RE NOT SETTING A FOOT ON THAT ISLAND, AND THAT'S FINAL!"

Nami had a slightly better idea, "We can just reset the Log from the ship!"

"Right!" Usopp agreed

"When that's done, we'll leave and never look back!"

"Right." He agreed again.

"Right, we'll all just stay... here."

A little more inland sailing later and Zoro dropped the anchor.

I sat down on the deck, staring at the sky, It was going to get boring if we all just stayed on the boat.

Luffy began laughing, "Sanji! Go make lunch!" He said between tiny bouts.

The chef gave our captain a confused look, "You want lunch?"

The captain nodded, "Yep, and one more thing." He turned to Sanji, smiling the biggest of smiles, "Make it a great big pirate lunch with lots of meat and no veggies! I'm gonna need some more energy."

I smiled, I saw where he was going. Nami ran between them, "Energy for what? What are you doing? You're not leaving here!"

Luffy's large smile turned more innocent, "You know," He laughed, "Fun stuff. Do you wanna come along?"

"Did you really think telling Luffy he couldn't do something would work?" I asked her.

She looked back at me with tears in her eyes, "I hoped it would."

I stood up, I didn't want to go with Luffy, _But exploring a little can't hurt..._

"Sanji, hurry up, I'm starving!"

"Right, be patient, I'll have it too you as soon as I can."

Vivi seemed to be thinking, she looked at Luffy, "Say, Luffy, would it be alright if I came along with you?"

Usopp screamed.

"Sure! Sounds great!" He was so excited he couldn't keep still.

"No!" Nami stared at the princess, "Vivi, you can't be serious!"

She smiled, "Yeah, I'd rather not sit here with nothing to do but worry about my troubles. This will keep me busy until the Log's reset."

"Out of the question! Seriously, it's way to dangerous for you out there!"

"I'll be fine." She assured the navigator, "Besides, I'll have Carue with me." She looked down at her duck, who took a moment to take in what she had just said, then warked in terror.

Nami inspected the duck, "Hey, something's wrong. Carue doesn't look to good. I think he might be in shock."

"Hey, Vivi," Sanji waved from the kitchen door, "If you're going to go exploring you're going to need a lunch, I'll pack you one."

"Thank you, and could you make something for Carue too?" She asked politely.

"Of course, you just leave it too me." He shut the door of the kitchen. About an hour later Sanji emerged with enough food for three people (Luffy, of course, would eat enough for two anyway) and a drink. He walked over, putting the food carefully into a back back and strapping the drink around Carue's neck. "There you go, Two pirate lunches for Luffy and Vivi, and one special drink for Carue."

"Thanks." Luffy said before he jumped up on the railing and down to dry land, followed by Vivi and Carue.

Vivi turned to us, "Well, see ya guys later!" They began running off, "Don't worry! Everything will be fine!"

Usopp was now staring in admiration, "Vivi, what a girl... she's so brave."

"And just what would you expect from someone who could infiltrate the enemies ranks..." Nami said dryly.

I took in a deep breath, "I hate to do this... but I swear, I'll be damned if I just sit on this boat waiting for the Log Pose to reset." I gently pat Merry's railing, "No offense meant, of course." I whispered to the boat. I turned to Sanji, "You mentioned we were short on food, right?"

He nodded, "Be careful while you're out there. Wouldn't want you getting hurt."

"Okay." I launched myself off of the deck and landed on the ground.

"Hey. Wait up." Zoro said, "I'll go too." He landed next to me.

I glanced over at him, then up at Sanji for further instructions. "Just, if you see any animals that look edible bring them back." We turned to leave, "And Zoro," We paused, turning back to the ship, Sanji was glaring down at him, "If Leanah ends up with so much as one scratch on her I'll personally hand you a beating you'll never forget."

the swordsman rubbed his head, "Alright, I can see why you'd want me to do this, since I can bring back something you couldn't catch yourself as well as protect her better." He started walking off.

I glared at him, _What the hell's that supposed to mean?!_

Sanji, meanwhile voiced my thoughts, "What the hell does that mean!?"

Zoro stopped, glaring back at Sanji.

The chef stood, one foot on Merry's railing, matching the swordsman's glare. "You're saying you can capture bigger game than I can? That my hunting skills are inferior? That I can't protect a beautiful lady?"

"Yeah. That's right."

The tension between them sparked and I pinched the bridge of my nose.

"Challenge accepted." Sanji jumped down and landed on the other side of me. He glared passed me at Zoro, "Winner brings back the most pounds of meat."

"What do you mean pounds? 'Cause I'll bring back tons."

They both began walking in different directions, "Why don't you let your hunting do your talking for you?" Sanji said, pointing his cigarette at Zoro.

"Heh, good luck, cook."

I stayed in place. It took them both a moment to realize I hadn't moved an inch.

"Leanah, dear! Why don't you come with me? I'll keep you safe!" Sanji was looking expectantly at me with hearts in his eyes.

Zoro stood there with his hands in his pockets, staring at me in total silence.

I blinked, then started down the path in front of me, "I don't need either of you to protect me, and I won't be a part of one of your stupid contests." I waved my hand in the air slightly, "While you two get meat, I'll go get fruit, or something."

I crossed my arms inspecting the trees for any sort of edible fruit. "This is a reasonably warm climate so... maybe I'll find apples or something..." I ran a hand through my hair, looking up higher, that's when I saw them. "Ah!"

Round red fruits were hanging from the high branches of the trees. I tapped my foot, "But how do I get them down?" I asked myself. I tried the tree, but the trunk was too mossy, I couldn't get a proper footing. I slowly grabbed my swords, smiling, I had an idea on how to get them down. I positioned my blades upwards, "_Regaling Storm!_" The wind blast knocked one loose from the tree.

I walked over and picked it up. "A pomegranate!" I exclaimed, "Awesome!" I set that one aside and got out from under the tree, positioning my swords again, "_Storming blast!_" Several branches full of pomegranates fell from the tree when my attack hit. I smiled wider, not what the technique was intended for, but still good.

I collected up as many as I could carry and headed back to the ship with them, I hummed a tune, the words weren't exactly coming to me, but the tune was catchy. I took a short cut I had seen earlier back to the ship, _There are two smaller paths... but if I just go straight here and jump down the rocks, I should get back faster..._ I thought to myself as I weaved between the trees.

I reached the edge of the peak-like thing to hear two people simultaneously say: "I am the winner."

I sighed as the chorus came once more, "You've lost, dammit!" _Great._ I thought as I made my way down the rocks.

"Look, as you can see my catch is bigger than yours."

"Moron, this competition 's about weight, how much meat we bring in, not the length of the beast. And Mine's obviously way beefier than yours!"

"Ha! Who cares how husky you dinosaur is, all that matters in the amount that can be cooked, and that thing's all bones, you're carrying about four pounds of meat there."

"That thing you're lugging around is nothing but muscle and skin."

I finally worked my way down, "Jesus." I sighed, "Seriously you two?" I walked in between them, "We're here to get food for the ship, not see whose is bigger." I glared at them both, "Stop fighting about it and just figure out what we can and can't use for cooking."

The tension between them was still strong, so strong they ignored me completely. "Ugh, this is pathetic, I'm not going to waste my time arguing with you. Tell you what, I'll go capture another beast just to shut you up."

"Yeah? Well if you're going to go after a different one then so am I, I won't let you cheat me out of my win because of a dumb technicality."

The volcano behind us erupted. Sanji smiled, "Alright, the next eruption from that Volcano signals the end of the competition, you have until then to secure your prey and return to the Going Merry."

"I can handle that, you're on."

I groaned as they went their separate ways again, "Ugh! Damn men!"

**Author's note:**

I had way too much fun writing this chapter. Way. Too. Much.

Your ever willing Author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	30. The Crap Cafe

I walked around the 'first' round of Zoro and Sanji's stupid contest. _Well, I guess I should drop these pomegranates off at Merry before I do anything else_. I jogged back to the ship, stopping only briefly when I heard strange noises.

"Laughing?" I paused, "Dorry... Hm.. Why did that name come to mind?" I stared up at the sky, "Huu.. I better hurry, that bad feeling is beginning to come back." I jogged, yet slowed to a walk not long after. "I'm worried..." I glanced back, "Something big is beginning to happen..." I frowned, "Really big."

I ran back to the ship, climbing on board and depositing all the pomegranates in the kitchen. I sighed, the volcano erupted. "Ah, there's the end of Zoro and Sanji's competition. Now I just gotta wait for them to get back." I popped into the girl's room and poured myself a glass of wine for the wait.

The wine didn't put me at ease like it was meant too. I frowned as the volcano erupted again, and shivered. "This feeling..." I muttered, "Loss... but... why?" I stared at the wine glass, not really in the mood for wine anymore.

I walked up to the deck, wine still in my hand. I heard something approaching the ship, "Who's there?" I called.

"Leanah!"

_Sanji._ "Hey!" He came into view dragging a larger dinosaur than before. "Have you seen anyone else? No one's returned yet! Not even Nami and Usopp!"

Sanji pulled the dead prehistoric creature along parallel to Merry, "No. but I'm sure they'll be back soon."

"You sure?"

"Don't worry, if anything nasty comes along I'll protect you from it." He smiled a charming smile at me.

"THAT'S NOT WHAT I'M WORRIED ABOUT!" I shouted.

Sanji climbed the ladder up onto the ship, "So what have you been doing? I haven't seen you since Zoro and I split up the first time."

I frowned, _I was standing between you two idiots when you decided there would be a second time!_ Still I pointed towards the kitchen, "I found a whole bunch of pomegranates."

Sanji lit a cigarette, "Ah, that's good, do you want me to make you something?"

I shook my head, "Nah." I walked into the kitchen and washed out my wine glass. "I'll be fine... I'm honestly worried about everyone else..."

"They'll be fine. I'm sure they'll be back any minute now."

We waited for about 10 more minutes.

"This is getting weird... It's been a long time... and no one else has come back..." He frowned, "I wonder what's going on?"

I shrugged.

"This island is crazy."

"You're just realizing this now?"

"Anything could have happened to Nami, Vivi and the others..."

I put my hands on my hips, "Well, let's hold off on the dinosaur for a while and see if we can't find out what happened."

The chef nodded. "Right."

We disembarked the ship together and trekked into the woods. We both called out for our crew members.

"ZOOORRRROOOO, WHERE ARE YOU?" I shouted, "LUFFY? USOPP? GUYS CAN YOU HEAR ME?"

"NNNAAAAMMMII, DEAR? VIVI? IF YOU CAN HEAR ME JUST SAY SOMETHING!"

After a while of walking our shouts got softer due to not wanting to over exert our voices.

"Nami! Vivi! Where are you?" Sanji called.

I cupped my hands around my mouth, "Usopp! Carue?! Luffy! Guys!"

We didn't receive a human answer, but a panther lunged at us, I drew my swords, staring the beast down.

Sanji slid between me and the panther, "Don't worry, I'll keep you safe."

I almost wanted to hit him, but I knew that wouldn't get my point across at all. I sheathed my swords.

The panther jumped at Sanji, he ducked, kicking the cat in its throat, it slumped, but stayed on the prowl, Sanji smirked.

"Alright... you look strong enough to carry two people..." He whirled around, bringing his heel down on the poor thing's head. A large lump formed and Sanji stood by it, "After you, my dear."

I raised my eye brows and walked over, he helped me get on to the panther's back, then climbed on in front of me. He lightly kicked the beast and it slowly began walking. _I feel a little bad for the poor thing..._ I thought as I resumed my search of the area around us.

We continued calling for the rest of the crew, but to no avail.

"Zoro! Luffy! Where are you guys?!"

"Nami! Vivi! Hey beautiful ladies! If you can hear me please just say something!" He looked around and was about to start another round of calls when something caught his attention.

"What is it?" I asked turning to see why he had stopped, I blinked, hopping off the panther after him.

"That's strange..." He said looking at what appeared to be a wax building in front of us. "What's this?"

"A... house?" I ventured a guess.

"Looks that way..."

"Should we go inside?"

"I don't see why not."

We both walked up to the wax building, Sanji, ever the gentleman, held the door for me as I entered. It was very nicely decorated. There was a table with an orange crisscross pattern table cloth and a very ornate tea set, and wax chairs around it.

Sanji smiled, walking over to the tea pot, he felt it with the back of his hand. "It's still warm." He politely ushered me to a seat and I sat down, he poured two cups of tea, placing one in front of himself, and the other in front of me.

I picked up the tea cup, slowly sipping it. _Earl grey..._

"Ah, Earl Grey is a perfect compliment to the afternoon..." Sanji said after having sipped his own tea.

We sat there, completely relaxed for a second.

"Ah!" Sanji exclaimed, "Hold on! What are we doing? We shouldn't be sitting here all relaxed!"

I set my cup down, "You're right. The others might need our help."

Sanji stood up, "I am still curious about one thing though.." I got up and followed as he began walking towards the door, "What is a nice relaxing place like this doing smack in the middle of an ancient, creepy jungle?"

"I have no-" I was interrupted by a noise.

**Purupurupurupuru**

We both turned, "What the-?

My eyes settled on a box I hadn't noticed before. Sanji gently pushed past me and opened the box, "Huh?" He reached in and picked up what was inside.

**Purupurupurupurupuru**

"What is it?"

"... A transponder snail..."

**Purupurupurupurupurupuru**

Sanji picked up the receiver, sitting down as he spoke, "Yeah, hello. You've reached The Crap Cafe, can I take your order?"

There was a long moment of silence, then a gruff voice replied, "You can quit fooling around now, jackass." I blinked at Sanji, he blinked back at me. "Now then, your report's a little bit late, don't you think?"

"Huh? My report you say?" Sanji shrugged at me, I shrugged back. He looked back at the snail, "And to who exactly am I speaking, please?"

"Me." The sand-paper voice replied, "Mr. 0."

We both glared at the transponder snail, _Crocodile._

**Author's Note:**

Ah, The Crap Cafe. Probably my favorite canon side plot. I actually had to look up the noise a Den den mushi/transponder snail makes because I always thought it was more of a barabarabara noise (haven't seen a ringing den den mushi in the manga, I be slow when readin'). Turns out though it's a purupurupuru noise like a cellphone, apparently even though all the other things I've seen have a cellphone noise as pirupipirupipirupi (or pidipipidipipidipi). But anyway, thank you for reading my rant on noises, don't forget I love review, and if you spot an error or think you know a way I can improve my story, don't be shy, tell me about it.

Your ever willing author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	31. Farewell! Conclusion to Little Garden!

"It's been a long time since I issued your orders, Mr. 3. What's happening on that island?"

_Ah... So this place must be Mr. 3's hideout while he's here... He's... __**here!**__ Shit! The others!_ I wanted to run and find them, but if I made too much noise Sanji would probably be found out. I stayed in place, but we shared a glance.

Sanji cursed under his breath.

"Well? I asked a question, so I expect an answer. Have you eliminated princess Vivi and the Straw Hats as you were ordered?"

Sanji forced himself to relax, "Oh yeah, I eliminated all those pesky brats like you said too, your secret is completely protected. So there's no need to keep going after them anymore."

"I see." Crocodile responded, "So, as we speak the Unluckies are headed your way to confirm the success of your mission, and deliver a certain... package."

Sanji looked at me, I mouthed to him, _"Mr. 13 and Ms. Friday._" He nodded.

"The Unluckies, of course. And.. a package?"

"It's an Eternal Pose that will point you towards Alabasta kingdom. Once that arrives you and Ms. Goldenweek will head for Alabasta, it's time for the next phase of the plan. We are about to begin, embarking upon our most important operation to date. Details will follow after you reach Alabasta, wait for my orders."

There was a noise coming from the windows, Sanji and I looked, there were Mr. 13 and Ms. Friday, staring at we who were obviously not Mr. 3 and Ms. Goldenweek. "Uh... What the? What are those?" Sanji asked, staring at the sea otter and vulture.

Ms. Friday moved her wings, revealing guns beneath them, she trained them on Sanji and me as Mr. 13 took apart his large sea shell, revealing blades.

"Mr. 3, What was that?" Crocodile asked over the transponder snail.

I quickly took the receiver from Sanji pointing to the Unluckies, hoping he under stood I wanted him to take them out, making my voice sound higher, I said "Oh just some pesky creatures that inhabit this island. They've been annoying to deal with while we were stationed here."

Ms. Friday shot at us, I dodged, grabbing the snail and keeping it tucked by my chest, I gulped as the sea otter ran at the chef, Sanji just barely lifted his leg up fast enough to dodge the creature's blades.

"Oh, so I guess you're trying to kill me, huh? Well monkey, bring it on!" He brought his leg back wards kicking the sea otter firmly into the wall. I silently cheered for him as he set his sights on Ms. Friday, "Alright you, what now?" Ms. Friday fired again, Sanji dodge all the bullets and I curled in more, out of everything the Transponder Snail couldn't get hurt during this fight. The chef grabbed the vulture's head between his legs, "So what are you gonna do now, you oversized chicken?" He hopped, thrusting all his weight to one side, snapping Ms. Friday's neck.

"What's going on?" Crocodile asked again.

I fumbled with the receiver, "Nothing really, just those stupid island animals. But Mr. 3 has taken care of them."

There was a dangerous pause. "You mean mere island animals gave Mr. 3 a hard time?"

"Aaahhhhh..." Sanji took the receiver.

"Don't worry, it's just..." _Don't say it, don't say it!_ "That Straw Hat captain was still alive. But I finished him off real good this time, really, no need to worry."

_**Dammit Sanji!**_ I screamed in my head.

Another dangerous pause. "What do you mean he was still alive? I believe that just a moment ago you said your mission was completed successfully, isn't that correct?"

"Yes, that is what I said! .. I mean I absolutely thought it was completed then, but that Straw Hat guy is really a lot tougher than you'd expect..." Sanji stood up, taking the Transponder Snail with him as he moved back to the table.

"So let me see if I understand..." Crocodile said dangerously, "The reports you and Ms. Goldenweek gave me were a complete _lies_?"

"Well... Yeah, when you put it that way I guess the reports weren't the truth.." He looked over at me and I fixed him with a glare. "But.. Now I've gotten rid of that Straw Hat for sure. So there's no need for you to send anyone else after him or the others."

I bit my lip, waiting to hear what the Warlord would say. "Very well, take the Pose and head straight to Alabasta from there immediately. Do you understand me?"

"Yes..." Sanji said. "I understand."

"Good." There was a moment of silence before he started speaking again, "We'll have no more radio contact from now on, understand? If the marines were to catch on to what we're doing, that would be most unfortunate. From this point on all of my orders will be sent via letter, following the usual protocol. That will be all, Mr. 3. Good luck on your mission."

There was a click as the line went dead and the Transponder Snail went to sleep.

"Well... Looks like he hung up..." I said, taking the receiver from Sanji and placing it on the Snail.

The chef stood up, walking over to the bodies of Mr. 13 and Ms. Friday "Now.. I wonder who these guys were..."

"They're the Unluckies, look for the Eternal Pose Crocodile was talking about." I said, walking over beside him.

He bent down and picked up a Pose. He lifted it over his shoulder for me to see, "This it?" He asked.

"Yeah, that would be an Eternal Pose to Alabasta."

Sanji nodded, "Now what do we do?"

"Go look for the others?" I half suggested and half reminded.

"Right." We exited the wax house and once again trekked through the woods. This time we didn't need to call out to them, because thanks to something in Sanji he just knew the right way to go.

"Nami, dear! Vivi, my love!" He called happily, the smoke from his cigarette turned into hearts. "And all the rest of you."

I waved, "Good to know you're not dead."

"Hey! Sanji! Leanah!" Luffy turned, smiling at us. Though.. a very different vibe was coming from Usopp and Carue.

Sanji walked forward, arms out wide, "You're all still OK! I'm so happy!"

I sighed, then stared wide eyed at the two giants. "Whoa..." I said softly, "They're giants..."

"What the hell is going on?!" Sanji ran closer to the Giants, "Is one of you guys Mr. 3?"

"No way." Nami said looking at him, "And just how do you know about Mr. 3 anyway?"

I walked over to Zoro.

"Hey." He said.

I sighed, inspecting him, "Christ, Zoro! What the hell did you do to yourself?!" I stared at his half cut off ankles.

He looked away, "I tried to escape."

"By cutting your feet off?! Zoro, that's what feral animals do! Not promising swordsmen!"

Zoro stood, up, teetering slightly, "Look, I can walk just damn fine, OK?"

"No!" I said, "No it is not OK!"

"Shut up, looks like Sanji is about to say something."

Sanji sat down not to far away, "So we've been busy, We jut got done talking with that Mr. 0 guy over Transponder Snail."

"M- Mr. 0?!" Vivi exclaimed.

"Yeah, that guy, I was talking to him in this weird hideout place Leanah and I found in the jungle. He thought we were some people named Mr. 3 and Ms. Goldenweek, I thought it would be a good idea to let him think that. And... since I had him on the line... I went a head and told him that... we were all dead."

Vivi pressed a hand to her chest, "So... he thinks he doesn't have to send people after us anymore!"

Usopp looked to the sky, "So you're saying that we're finally free of people chasing us now that we can go anywhere anyway!?" he started crying, "Oh that's just great!"

"I wouldn't say that just yet, Usopp." I said smiling, walking over to Sanji.

"We can't go?" Sanji asked, "Why is there something we still need to take care of here?" He reached into his pocket. "That's a really shame after we managed to get a hold of this thing." He held up the Eternal Pose. Everyone stared at us with wide eyes and wider mouths. Sanji blinked, "Uh.. what?"

Luffy laughed, "An Eternal Pose to Alabasta! ALRIGHT!" He, Usopp and Carue dance for joy. "Now we can set sail!"

Nami rejoiced as well, "Yes! I knew something good was going to happen!"

Vivi ran over and hugged Sanji, "Oh thank you, Sanji! I was getting really worried! Thank you!"

I sighed as Sanji almost melted at the hug.

"You did good." Zoro said.

I glared at him, pointing to his ankles, "You're getting those wounds stitched up on the ship."

"Chs." He began walking away.

Vivi let go of Sanji and walked over to Nami and the others. Sanji stared at Zoro as he passed, "Zoro, hold on a sec." He stood up. "So, uh... you forget about our hunting contest?"

I groaned.

"Nope. I hate to tell you this, but you lost." He brought his arms up, "I caught a Rhino that was this big."

"That doesn't sound very tasty, but I guess you can eat it." Sanji walked closer to him.

"Sounds just fine to me." He replied.

I pinched the bridge of my nose. "Goooooddddd..."

"Alright, giant old guys, It's really been a lot of fun." The captain said to the giants, "But we gotta go!"

I looked up at the giants, there was one with a long brown beard and one with a short tan beard. The one with the short tan beard nodded, "Right, of course you need to get going."

The one with the long brown beard smiled, "It's too bad you have to leave so soon, I hope you get to your homeland in time."

Vivi smiled up at them, "Me too! Thank you."

Luffy began jogging backwards towards Merry, "See ya! Try not to die any more, OK?"

I followed behind the two bickering idiots who were totally engrossed in talking about their hunting competition. I scratched my head, I felt odd without my bandana, I didn't even have the other one on my person. I puffed my cheeks getting tired of hearing them go on and on about how much bigger their catch was than the others.

It didn't even end when we got back to the ship! They kept bickering!

"See! I told you mine was bigger than yours! I win!"

_Shut up!_ I shouted at them in my head.

"You should look closer, my lizard is much bigger!"

"What? Are you blind or something? My Rhino is obviously so much larger than your stupid lizard is!"

Luffy smiled, "It doesn't really matter, they both look yummy!"

"JUST SHUT UP, LUFFY!" They both shouted.

Zoro glared harder at Sanji, "Yours doesn't even have horns!"

"What does that have to do with anything?!"

I rubbed my temples as Nami sighed, "Children, how long are you going to fight? We don't need all of it anyway! Just cut up what we do need so we can get out of here already!"

Sanji turned, "Right! Of course, Nami!"

The swordsman wasn't letting it go, "Leanah, Tell him that I'm clearly the winner here!"

"Don't care." I replied bluntly.

"Usopp!"

"I don't really care either."

Vivi leaned on the railing, "Can't you two just call it a tie?"

Zoro scoffed, "I don't believe in ties I fight to win." I glared at him.

"JUST HURRY IT UP YOU TWO!" Nami shouted.

That scared them enough to get them to stop bickering.

Sanji quickly got as much meat from the two beasts as he could that would be able to keep.

Usopp and I dropped the sails and Zoro pulled the anchor in.

I crossed my arms, staring at the blood seeping through Zoro's pant legs. "Nami, can you sew?" I asked.

"Hm?" The navigator turned to me, "Yeah.. a little... but.. My hands aren't steady right now.." Nami said holding her hands up, they were shaking.

I sighed, "Vivi, get the med kit, and a towel," I turned to Sanji, "Get what ever alcohol we have left, I think you guys might want to stay out of the kitchen for a while."

"What? What are you planning?" The swordsman looked genuinely terrified.

I turned to him, pulling him over and into the kitchen, "I'm going to sew your feet back on." I pushed him on to a bench as Vivi and Sanji brought the requested items. "Shut the door behind you!" I called to them as I grabbed the towel, "I'm sorry." I said as I gagged him with it.

His hands gripped the edge of the bench and he began to scream at me through the towel.

"Relax!" I shouted at him, "I haven't even started yet!" I knelt down, putting on gloves then carefully disinfected the needle and string with the alcohol. I rolled his pant legs up, disinfecting the wounds little by little.

Threading the needle wasn't to hard since it was wet, but then every time I got close to him with it he freaked out. "Stop squirming or I'm gonna mess up!" I said slapping his knee. He only squirmed more, "Don't make me get Sanji in here to hold you down!" I threatened. He glared at me, "I could just as easily tie you to a chair." He started into another muffled rant, I quickly grabbed his ankle and pushed the needle through the skin, pulling the thread through and continuing to do so in a zigzag pattern.

Eventually Zoro passed out from the pain. "You're stupid." I chastised the passed out swordsman, "I mean really, how would you have kept your promises to Luffy and Kuina _with no feet_?" I cut the thread, knotting it as best I could then stared on his other leg, "Not to mention how Hawk-eyes would react." I continued the fluid motion of pulling the needle through, "I assume he would be as disappointed in you as he was with Shanks back when he lost his arm saving Luffy." I was glad he was passed out, even if it was from pain. I grabbed a roll of bandages and wrapped his wounds tight enough they wouldn't open but not so tight it would cut off circulation.

A few moments later and I emerged from the room, "I've finished. They're not the prettiest stitches in the world, but they're the best I could do." I sighed, "I'll move him into the boy's room later. Right now I'd just like to get out of here."

Nami was giving me the weirdest stare, and Usopp just barely looked up at me. I sighed, stitching felt far too familiar for my tastes.

"Couldn't you have gotten any more meat on the ship?" Luffy ask the chef.

"Are you kidding? There's no way we could preserve more than this, if I had it would have just rotted before we could eat it."

"Honestly..." I sighed.

"Are you actively trying to sink us?" Nami asked, poking the captain.

Luffy pointed towards the end of the tributary, "Hey look! It's the giants, they must have come to say good bye!"

I gulped, I had a feeling they weren't there to say good bye...

"A great danger still lies ahead of you." The short tan bearded one said.

"It is an obstacle that has always been here, trying to prevent people from reaching the next island." The long brown bearded one said.

"Uhhhhhh..."

"Every one of you fought like true warriors to protect the pride our duel."

"And because of that, no matter what enemy you may face..."

"We will never let them destroy your pride, friends!"

"You must have faith in what we say. Go straight! No matter what happens, go straight!"

"Yeah!" Luffy said, "Got it!"

I crossed my arms, "I've got a bad feeling about this..."

"I don't get it." Usopp said, "What did he say?"

Luffy repeated the giant's words, "No matter what happens, just go straight!"

We sailed out past the two giants, "This is good bye.." One of them said.

"Look! Over there!" Nami shouted, pointing at something that was surfacing from under the water. I stared at it, from the parts I could see it looked pinkish, almost like... _a giant fish!_

"AHHHH! IT'S A MONSTER!" Usopp shouted.

"Whoa! What the heck is that guy? A gold fish?"

"I-... I- It's- It's a giant gold fish!"

Nami turned to Usopp, "Hey! Usopp, stop standing there and go work the rudder!"

"Yeah, but... we need to keep going straight, isn't that right Luffy?"

"Yep."

We sailed closer and closer to the fish's mouth, my grip tightened on my swords. _Trust what they said!_ I told myself.

"Luffy! Don't be a moron! This isn't going to be like it was with Laboon!"

"Yeah, I know. But calm down... Here, I'll let you have the last rice cracker." Luffy tossed her something.

"I DON'T WANT A CRACKER!" But she caught it anyway, "If we don't turn the ship around right now that thing is gonna eat us!"

Carue began freaking out, I ran over and opened the kitchen door so the duck had some place to hide, also to check on Zoro. _Still passed out..._ "Everything will be fine, Nami, trust the captain, just this once!"

"Luffy, are you sure we can trust those pals of yours?" Sanji asked.

"Yep."

"Are we really going to willingly head straight into that beast?!" Vivi shouted.

"Uhhuh!" Nami cried, "It's too late to turn now!"

I shut my eyes and almost ran into the kitchen myself. I heard the fish shut its mouth much to the screaming dismay of my crew mates, except Luffy, who was laughing.

"JUST GO STRAIGHT! GO STRAIGHT!" Usopp yelled as if it were a magic phrase.

"WHAT DOES THAT MATTER!? WE'VE ALREADY BEEN EATEN!" Nami shouted

"WHO CARES?! JUST GO STRAIGHT!" Luffy yelled.

After a second there was a flash of light as something penetrated the giant fish, and in an instant there was natural light again. The giants had been true to their word. We were not (technically) eaten, I let out a relieved sigh, shaking, that was definitely one too many times being almost eaten by large sea creatures.

"Ha ha ha! We're flying!" Luffy shouted as we came out the other side.

"Wha-?" Zoro was awake now.

I let out a peal of laughter, "This is amazing!" I shouted. "I can't believe it!" I laughed more, "So this is that feeling they all talked about!" I was exhilarated, and happy, and I couldn't believe I'd never felt a feeling like this before. It was just... pure... pure... peace, I suppose. All I know is, it was the most amazing feeling in the world, and that wasn't the last time I felt it.

**Author's****Note:**

And another piece to the mystery that is Leanah's past silently slips into place (only not so quietly because she messed up a lot causing quite a bit of pain). Let me get these two out of the way right now: No, she was not training to become a surgeon or a doctor.

Also Y'all can start calling me the master of sneaky foreshadowing. I've carefully worked a few things in previous and later chapters that hint at things that will happen in Alabasta.

Your Ever Willing Author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	32. Nami ill? The Rush to find a Doctor!

I looked into the kitchen, "Carue, you can come out now."

Zoro and the duck hobbled out of the room. Carue warked and sat down next to the door. The swordsman rubbed his head.

I smiled, "Shame you passed out, you missed us getting eaten by another giant sea creature."

He glowered, obviously unhappy with me. I smiled.

A day passed with peaceful sailing. Well, almost peaceful.

"ZORO! SIT DOWN! YOU'LL BREAK YOUR STITCHES!"

"NO! YOU CAN'T MAKE ME!"

I balled my left hand into a fist, "I swear to god if you don't sit down right now-!"

"You'll what?" He sneered, "Drink me to death?"

I was ready to punch him in the face, but Sanji's foot beat me to it. The blow knocked Zoro back into Merry's wall. "It's not polite to insult a lady." The chef chastised.

The swordsman grit his teeth, "What lady? All I see are two pains in the ass."

Sanji kicked him again. I groaned, "I'm not asking you to stop training! All I'm asking is that you tone the training down while your stitches are still in!" I waved Sanji off to the kitchen, the cook complied.

He glared at me from the floor, rubbing a heel mark off of his face.

I bent down poking him on the forehead, "Honestly, for a swordsman you're not very careful about taking care of yourself." I smiled internally, knowing this next insult was a low blow, "I bet that's how you got the scar on your chest, by acting recklessly and throwing your life away."

His glare twisted into something I couldn't place, and I could tell he was fighting to not respond. I turned on my heel, leaving Zoro alone. And again there was peace for a few hours.

"Guys, listen up," Usopp said with a completely serious look on his face. "I will go to Elbaf some day! To the village of warriors!"

"Yeah! Great!" Luffy and Usopp locked arms and began dancing to a silly song of their own making. I looked down, Nami didn't seem to be fairing to well. Luffy and Usopp moved their dance to the railing of Merry as Carue ran around the deck.

"Where do they get so much energy?" Nami asked, slumped against the mast.

"I suppose it's just natural for them." I replied, walking over to her, "Are you OK? You don't look so good."

Nami smiled up at me, _Fake_. "I'm fine. Don't worry."

The song coming from Luffy and Usopp ended when they both almost fell off the ship, much to Carue's distress.

"I'm just..." She put a hand on her forehead, "With everything that's happened... I'm exhausted." She held up the Eternal Pose, "Vivi, Leanah... Could you watch this for me?"

The princess walked over from the railing and took it from the navigator. "Sure."

There was a moment when Vivi just stared at it, I'm almost sure she was seeing her home. Nami smiled at her, "You're on your way, You'll make it to Alabasta." Her smile turned into more of an odd smirk, "My rosy outlook is that we can make it there safely and without anymore surprises."

"Yes... I must return, it's my obligation! I am the person everyone in the kingdom is counting on!" She stared down at the deck, her grip on the Pose tightening, "I _will_ return home... Alive."

We all stared at her, her determination was almost empowering, if not a little dangerous. _She may end up pushing herself to much..._

"You'll get home, but there's no need to push yourself so hard." Sanji said, coming out of the kitchen with a tray of food. "You've got me." He brought the tray around to us, "Here try these sweets, they'll help you relax, I've made some delicious tarts and your choice of coffee or tea."

Vivi smiled up at the chef, "Thank you."

The boys (Including Carue but sans Zoro and Sanji) hungrily stared at the tarts. Sanji glared at them, "Yours are in the kitchen. Now go."

And they were off, "They'll never change will they?" I asked.

"I doubt it." Came Nami's almost laughing reply. Then she looked down at the deck. I got a worried feeling, then thought of something.

I stood up, slowly walking to the upper deck, "Zoro! You better not be working yourself too hard! Your stitches might pop!"

"I DIDN'T NEED THE DAMN STITCHES IN THE FIRST PLACE!"

"Everything I know about medicine begs to differ!"

"You made me lose count, Dammit!"

I walked over to his little training spot, he was using a slightly smaller weight than he had been using the past few times I had caught him training, I considered that some small win, then retreated back to the lower deck, I wanted one of those tarts.

Somehow, in the less then two minutes I was gone, Nami seemed to have gotten worse. "Vivi..." She said weakly, "I'm sorry, but... I need to rest..."

The princess glanced back at her, "Alright. Don't worry, Nami, you go get some rest, I'll keep everything under control here."

I walked up to Nami, reaching out to help her, "Here, Let me help you."

She shook me away from her, "No... I'm fine." She got to her feet only to fall down again.

"Nami!" I shouted, dropping to my knees.

Vivi joined me by her side as she gently placed her hand against Nami's forehead. "She's burning up!" She shifted so she was on the balls of her feet, "Hey everyone! Come quick!"

The door to the kitchen opened, "Whash wrong, Vivi? Are you OK?" Luffy asked though a mouth full of food.

I stood up, "Nami's sick. She's got a high fever!"

"WHAT?" Sanji shouted pushing everyone else out of the door way, "NAMI'S SICK?!"

Everyone gathered around her, I stared at them, "Give her some space, will you?!" I shooed them back a bit, "We need to get her into bed." I looked at Usopp, "Get some towels, and cold water please." The sharp shooter nodded and dashed off, I looked at Vivi, "Help me get her into bed."

The princess nodded as we both carefully brought Nami to her feet and walked towards the girl's room. The we slowly laid her down in the bed covering her with blankets.

Sanji stood at her bedside, crying dramatically, and biting a handkerchief. Usopp and Luffy just stared at her, completely serious.

I frowned, "Right now she's just got a fever, she's not going to die." _Not yet anyway..._ I looked at Vivi who was wringing out a towel to place on Nami's forehead.

"Yes. It's most likely just cold caused by the climate, completely normal." Vivi set the towel down, sitting back, "Sailors in the Grand Line aren't usually used to the strange weather and can become quite ill. There are tales of strong pirates who suddenly died, their immune systems were attacked by colds and fevers. Ignoring the symptoms can make even the slightest cold deadly."

Sanji wailed, "N- Nami!"

Vivi looked at us, "Isn't there anyone aboard this ship with even the slightest amount of medical experience?" Usopp and Luffy pointed to me and Nami. Vivi looked expectantly at me, I shrugged.

"I have no idea what we might be dealing with other than a cold."_ Kestia,_ My brain said, _You're dealing with Kestia. You have to get her to an experienced doctor soon!_ "But I've got a feeling it's much more than just a cold."

Vivi sighed, looking down at our sick navigator.

"Well, when you're sick, eating lots of meat always helps!" Luffy turned to Sanji, "Right, Sanji?"

The chef managed to stop crying, "Meat is protein, and that does give the body energy to operate properly... I can cook some food's that'll boost her energy... But there's no guarantees, I'm not a doctor." He was genuinely broken up about Nami being ill. He looked at her, "Besides, if my cooking made a difference she'd never get sick. I put a hundred times more care into preparing her meals than I do for you losers... I serve Nami, Vivi, and Leanah fresh meat and vegetables to ensure a balanced diet, anything that's rotten or moldy.." He pointed at Usopp and Luffy, "Goes to you."

Usopp smacked Sanji's hand, "Jerk!"

Luffy shrugged, "Oh well, still tastes good to me." He laughed.

I licked my lips, "This really isn't your average cold or climate illness. A balanced diet wouldn't have stopped her from getting sick."

Sanji sighed, "My point was that as long as I'm the cook on this ship no one's going to feed Nami better in terms of nutrition. I can do anything in the kitchen. Still, I do know that there are specific foods for different kinds of illnesses, but I can't make that call, she needs to be diagnosed by a doctor who'll tell us how to help her."

"Just... feed her everything that we've got." Luffy said.

We all stared at him, Sanji's stare was more of a glare, "Shut up, she doesn't have the energy to eat. She's. Sick."

Vivi took Nami's temperature, "Ah! 104! This isn't good!"

"What?" I looked at the thermometer myself, "Oh dear..."

"There's bound to be doctors and nurses in Alabasta that came help... right?" Usopp asked.

"Even if there are... I started staring down at the floor.

"We're at least a week away..." Vivi said hopelessly.

"Kay, so she's sick. Maybe we're overreacting." Luffy said.

"I don't know, I've never been this sick." Usopp and Sanji said in unison.

I resisted the urge to hit them both on the head, "Of course we're not over reacting! With a temperature of 104, her body is fighting off a really bad infection!"

"Yeah, if we don't get her help soon it could be life threatening!" Vivi said.

Cue everyone freaking out. "AHHH YOU MEAN NAMI'S GONNA DIE!?"

"GUYS, SHUT UP!" I shouted, "Your yelling isn't going to help her!"

"WE HAVE TO FIND A DOCTOR FOR NAMI BEFORE SHE DEEEEEIIIIIIISSSS!" Luffy screamed.

I raised my fist to hit him, but was stopped by Vivi, "OK, calm down! You're only going to make her feel worse!"

"Listen..." Nami said weakly. Everyone shut up and looked at her, "I'm fine."

"Nami..." Vivi said worryingly.

"Yay! She's cuuurrred!"

I hit Luffy. "Shut it!"

Nami huffed, this was taking a lot of energy she probably didn't have, "Go to my desk... and open the second drawer... There's a newspaper in the bottom."

I blinked, "Nami... Are you sure?" I asked as Vivi stood up.

"Yes. Vivi needs to know." The princess stopped for just a moment, then continued to the desk, I turned, watching her open the drawer and fish out the paper. She slowly read the article that was showing.

"No..." She shivered, "That's not possible..."

"Huh? What's up? Something wrong?" Luffy asked.

"Is it about Alabasta? Tell us."

I shivered, recalling reading that article.

"According to this article, 300 thousand royal soldiers have defected to the Resistance!" She stared at the paper in horror, "Until now we've been embroiled in a cold war, with 600 thousand royal soldiers against 400 thousand rebels. With this, the balance has shifted."

"The uprising in Alabasta will seriously escalate now. Things will get ugly." Nami looked over at Vivi, "That paper you're looking at is three days old. I'm sorry I didn't say something, but I couldn't change our speed, so I didn't want to worry you. There's nothing anyone can do right now, you understand, Luffy?"

The captain looked like he was really thinking this through, "Things are bad and they're beyond our control?"

"You got that better than I had hoped." She smiled, looking weaker by the minute.

"Nami, look, ya need to see a doctor right away." Usopp said.

"You do." I confirmed.

"Hm. Nah, I'm fine. The thermometer's broken, I mean, who gets a temperature of 104?" She slid out of the bed, standing up. "It's probably just a mild case of sunstroke, there's nothing a doctor could do for me that time won't." She walked towards the stairs to the upper deck, "Besides we don't have time to hunt for one, we need to head straight for Alabasta," She turned back to us, "Thank you for your concern though."

She pulled on her shoes and walked outside. "Huh... She sure recovered fast."

I crossed by arms, "She didn't recover."

"Yeah," Usopp said, "She's faking."

"Now that this conflict has escalated... more blood will be shed throughout the kingdom! We're at war! If I don't put a stop to this insanity the entire kingdom of Alabasta will be doomed! Crocodile will move in and seize control!" Vivi crinkled the paper, smashing her head into it. "You're trying to get me home safely but there's no time! I need to get home as quickly as possible, if I don't get back in time a million innocent citizens will give their lives needlessly!"

"There's a mill-" I cloncked Luffy on the head.

"That's not really important right now." I said.

"What a horrible burden you have to carry." Sanji said, almost as if seeing Vivi in a new light. "I'm sorry."

I sat down beside her as she began crying, "You realize you're not in this alone, right?" I leaned slightly, trying to put myself in her line of sight, "The entire Straw Hat crew is behind you no matter what." I pat her back, then turned slightly to Sanji, "Sanji, I want you to keep an eye on Nami, OK?"

"Right." The chef left the room just before Zoro called down.

"Hey! Get your butts out here, right now!"

We all left to get to the deck, leaving Vivi alone in the room. "Huh?" Luffy asked, "What is it?"

"You know," Sanji said stubbornly, "I find it hard to get motivated when you're the one giving orders."

"Shut up, and get moving. Take the seat and catch the port side wind."

Sanji looked over at our navigator, "Nami, what up? It's a perfect day, the sun is shining, the waves are quiet."

"The wind." Came her reply.

"Wind?"

"There's a powerful wind," Luffy jumped up to the upper deck, "It's heading right this way," Nami turned around just as Luffy reached out to feel her forehead, "I think- Huh? Luffy?"

A moment passed before Luffy took his hand away, "Ah! Your head is on fire! You gotta stay in bed and we gotta get you a doctor!"

"Maybe you should mind your own business! This is my normal temperature, now quit being so stupid and pull the damn ropes!"

"Nami, I know you're acting brave for Vivi, but if you keep pushing your body won't have a chance to heal." Carue warked in agreement.

"Sanji's right! Nami, go lie down again." I begged, "Please!"

"I told you guys I'm fine! Let it go!" She grabbed the railing for support.

"Whoa!" Usopp said calmly, "Take it easy."

"Not another word, dammit! Hurry and move the ship!" The navigator shouted.

And that's where the argument ended. We all went to stations, pulling the sails in place and changing the direction of the ship. Luffy hopped onto his usual perch.

Vivi exited the room, "I have to ask you all a favor!" She stood at the railing, "As a passenger on your ship it's not my place to ask this, but I have no choice. My homeland is in jeopardy of being destroyed so I would really appreciate it if we could move even faster. Every minute I'm out here puts more of my people in danger of losing their lives. We need to head for Alabasta at full speed!"

Everyone was quiet for a moment, "Of course we will." Nami said, smiling, "Just like we promised."

Another silence. Everyone was looking at either Vivi or Nami, the princess we all wanted to get home, and the dangerously sick navigator we all wanted to get better.

Vivi smiled, "Alright then, it's settled, let's find an island with a doctor in it right away," Nami was shocked by this, "First thing's first, we need to hurry and get Nami healthy again, then we head for Alabasta." She glanced down at us, "After all, we need her at the helm if we intend to move at top speed!"

"Right! No one makes this ship move like Nami!" Luffy said.

Usopp gave Vivi an odd look, "Princess, just hold on. Won't finding a doctor for Nami take time the citizens of Alabasta just don't have?"

"That's right, so the sooner we can get a doctor for Nami, the sooner we can get to Alabasta!"

Sanji smiled, "Those are wise words, Vivi. You're beautiful and brilliant."

"The girl's got guts."

I nodded, "You'll make a great queen some day, Vivi."

Nami hobbled over to Vivi, "Thank you, Vivi." she slumped more.

Vivi moved to support her, "Don't overexert yourself anymore."

"I'm... I-.. I'm sorry... I may.. need to lie down." The navigator collapsed into the princess's arms.

"Nami!"

"AHHH! WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!" Luffy shouted pointing at what looked like a giant spinning cylinder.

"It's a cyclone!" Vivi exclaimed.

Luffy jumped on the mast, wrapping an arm around it, "IT'S HHUUUUUGGGEEE!"

"W- Wait! That's the same path we were on a moment ago!" Vivi shouted.

Sanji nodded, "Vivi's right, that's the exact same direction!"

"It would have been a direct hit if he had kept going straight! We'd be dead right now!"

"Well, thank god we listened to Nami!" I shouted, tightening my pony tail and taking off my bandana so the winds wouldn't blow it away.

Lightning shot down from the sky and hit a patch of water not far from where we would have been had we not turned. "Whoa! You see that?! Way too close! We barely missed it!" Luffy shouted again. A moment passed. Luffy looked down at us, "Alright! What are we waiting here for!? LET'S FIND NAMI A DOCTOR!"

The entire crew let out one simultaneous "Yeah!"

**Author's Note:**

We are approaching Drum Island. Seriously, it's like... next chapter or so. Drum Island is one of my favorites (I'm going to say that a lot so bear with me.) And not just because of Chopper or Ace's first "appearance" (flash backs are tricky you know), but because I generally like the story with Hiriluk and Kureha, plus it is the first place where attention is really brought to the Will of the D.

There are so many road blocks in the way of what I'm planning to do with this story, and by god I'm trying my hardest to either work around them or rewrite so I don't hit them. Any major problems are gonna hitch up my writing a bit, so chapters may be coming slower than they have been.

Your ever willing author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	33. Wapol, Luffy's family, and a snow island

We moved Nami back into the Girl's room. Vivi and I took shifts on who took care of her, Vivi had the first shift, I had a different thing to work on.

"Zoro," I shouted, "Get in here, I'm going to take out your stitches now!"

"Finally!" I heard the swordsman shout. He entered the room and sat down in Nami's chair. I grabbed the med kit and rolled his pant legs up. I went through the process of pulling on gloves and disinfecting the medical scissors, pliers and the wounds. "Could you hurry it up?" He asked impatiently.

I stuck my tongue out at him. "Unless you want me to mess up and end up giving you a worse infection of accident, no, I can't." I breathed out and slowly began cutting the stitches on his right ankle. "This healed nicely." I said more to myself than to him, "Maybe I was going to become a doctor of some kind..." I pulled the stitches out one by one, then moved to his other leg and repeated the process. After I was done I bandaged his legs again. "There. Now keep them clean, and please, please, _please_, keep the bandages dry."

"Yeah, whatever." He stood up and exited the room.

I sat back, cleaning up the medical stuff. "Who am I kidding, he's not going to listen..."

Vivi laughed, "You put so much effort into making sure he was OK." She looked at me, "And he doesn't care."

"Ppffhhh..." I looked back at the princess, "I really don't care if he cares or not." I stared up at the door, "What's important is that he keeps his promises and I keep mine. He can't keep his if he's dead..."

"And yours?" Vivi asked.

"Well... Frankly I can't keep mine if he's dead either." I shifted, changing the subject "Sailing blind on the Grand Line is a dangerous thing... We have to be very vigilant when doing look-out."

"Yeah..." Vivi agreed. She glanced back at me, "You should probably get some rest, you haven't slept much in the past few days."

I stared at the floor, _Try, "You haven't slept at all in two days..."_ "I'm fine, I got plenty of sleep last night!" I smiled, my thoughts feeling a little muddled.

Vivi sighed, going back to tending Nami, "If you're sure."

It got colder, but the climate then remained stable, no freak storms. Sanji came down to inquire if Nami's temperature had gone down, which, "No, it hasn't."

Sanji began running around the cabin helplessly, "Ahh! Vivi, Leanah! What are we going to do! Nami's temperature hasn't gone down!" Carue warked in agreement.

"Guys. Stop! That behavior isn't helping!" Vivi said.

He and the duck skidded to a stop. With one look at Nami you could tell she was fighting off something bad. Her breathing was irregular and her face was now completely flush. I stood up, "I'm going to go outside and see how the others are doing."

I walked out, slipping my shoes on and going up to the deck, only to see them all staring at something. I walked over to Luffy, "What's going on?" The captain simply pointed out to the ocean, my eyes followed to where he was pointing to, "Whaaa-?"

I was staring at a man who looked like he belonged in a medieval court who also seemed to be standing _on the ocean_! I blinked, _Surely I'm hallucinating! That can't be possible. _

"Hello!" The man on the ocean called, "Sure is chilly today." Luffy and Usopp sneezed.

They sneezed again. "Yeah..." Luffy said slowly, "It is chilly today..."

"Definitely, it's very chilling, in fact I would even say it's freezing." Usopp said.

I nodded, "Yes."

"Really?" The man asked, sending a shock through everyone, even him.

Suddenly something surfaced from the ocean, "Usopp!" I shouted as I latched onto the nearest railing, "Hold the rudder steady!"

"Right." He weakly replied as he tumbled in that direction.

"What the hell is that?" Zoro asked staring at the thing that had surfaced in front of us. "Is that a ship?"

I stared at the tin ball, "Sub...marine?" The tin started retracting, revealing a very large ship, much larger than Merry. I blinked as a pirate flag unfurled from the top of the mast. I couldn't believe I wasn't dreaming.

"Oh crap!" Usopp said, "It's a pirate ship!"

I cursed under my breath, "This can't be good..."

"Ouwahahaha!" a voice came from the larger ship, "don't tell me our underwater raid ship, the Tin Tyrant, surprised you!" The voice continued laughing as his crew boarded our ship, training their guns on us. He boarded the ship last, the man- if you could call him that- was very, _very_ fat, seemed to be made out of metal, and also appeared to be wearing animal fur. He had a large piece of meat screwed on a sword. _What a waste of a good Sword._ I frowned.

"Hey! What's going on-" Sanji ran out onto the deck, and stopped when guns were pointed at him. He calmly lit a match, then his cigarette, he took a drag. "So... What's going on?"

"Well, we're under attack. And it's still snowing." Luffy was completely calm.

"Well yeah... the guns pointing at my face kind of gave that one away." The chef said, "So what next?"

"You all consider yourselves a band of pirates? That's amusing. I only count five of ya." The fat man took a large bite out of the meat _and_ the sword. _Now that's a total waste of a good sword!_ I screamed in my head. "Sort of strange... that your group would have so few members." He said between bites before eating the hilt of the had-been sword.

"Kay, that's just weird, what kind of guy likes to eat knives?" Luffy stared at the odd fat man.

"Bleehh! My gums are bleeding just watching!" Usopp cried.

"What a waste of a good sword!" I finally moaned out loud.

The man continued eating, "Alright, I'll keep this simple, see my men here and I wish to travel to Drum kingdom, you wouldn't happen to have an Eternal Pose or a Log Pose would you?"

"Sorry, can't help, I've never even heard of this Drum kingdom." Sanji said coolly.

"Well," Luffy said impatiently, "Now that we have that all settled, would you guys just leave already? We're in a hurry and we don't have time to deal with this."

"You'll never enjoy life if you're always in a rush." The fat man said, "But if you have neither Pose, what can be done? I suppose I'll have to settle for your treasure on this ship."

"Huh?!"

"First thing's first, I'm feeling a bit hungry." The man turned his head slightly to look at the section of railing next to him. I twitched. He somehow managed to bite into that section and begin eating it.

"Merry!" I shouted. Now I knew I wasn't dreaming, I could never have had a dream that bad.

"He's a ship eating monster!" Usopp cried more.

"HEY! Our ship isn't your lunch!" Luffy shouted, glaring at the strange man.

"Be quiet!" On of the soldiers near Luffy said, "Wapol doesn't like to be disturbed when he's eating!"

Luffy pulled his arms back, "Shut up!" He smacked the two soldiers beside him.

"Damn pirate! We're under attack, shoot him!" I smirked as they began shooting at our rubber captain.

"Ah! Finally I can get some action!" I loosened my coat, drawing Ami and Ana. A few of the soldiers set their sights on the rest of us, I ducked from the gun fire almost getting hit with the bullets, my timing was getting slower. "_Storming Blast!_" That disarmed some and wounded others.

"Comin' down!" I heard Zoro shout, I rolled as he jumped off the mast, killing several mooks in his path.

I swerved through a crowd of lackeys, making minor cuts here and there, nothing too fatal. But they were beginning to try my patience, they just kept coming. I blinked, it was getting harder and harder to focus.

One snuck up behind me, I was about to get hit but Sanji's foot planted itself on the man's face, "Didn't anyone ever tell you it's impolite to sneak up on a lady?"

"Thanks for watching my back."

"No problem, Leanah darling."

We were surrounded again, I slid easily into another stance, running at the next group, "_Ha-di!_" That gravely injured quite a few of them, but I couldn't seem to summon the will to care.

The soldiers were getting worried now, "Hey! Um, Wapol! We need help!"

Wapol took another bite out of Merry, I twitched, it was taking most of my strength not to just go after him. Luffy charged at the tin man, "HEY! You still eating!?"

The soldiers started boasting about how now Luffy would fall pray to the Munch-Munch fruit powers, and I would have been worried when Wapol bit Luffy, had Luffy's arms not whipped by my face.

I smiled, "Oh, he's in for it now." I sheathed my swords.

"I prefer someone less chewy..." Wapol complained.

Then a very muffled, "I said..." Came from in side his mouth as Luffy's arms rocketed back towards us. "LEAVE!" The impact got Luffy out of Wapol's mouth and shot the tin man off of the ship. He flew so high and far it almost looked like he became a star.

Then the figure head on Wapol's ship opened as a ladder descended, all the remaining living soldiers ran back onto their ship. Two people from Wapol's ship swore that we would pay for what we did. We watched the ship sail away.

"That ass had it coming!" I shouted, then quieter I addressed the crew, "Hurting the poor Going Merry like that." I pat Marry's railing.

"Yeah." Usopp said, staring at the place where Wapol had taken a large bite of Merry. "But those guys were crazy... What did they call that guy? Wapol?"

"Who cares about what his name was. Don't worry about it. The guy is obviously a moron, best to just forget about him." Sanji said.

"How could I forget about him when there's no possible way I could forgive him for taking a bite from Merry!" I shouted, my trigger was going rapid fire, I was tired in more ways than one.

Usopp nodded. "True."

I sighed, "Someone better get up there and take watch until dinner."

Zoro was already half way up, "I'll take look out until dinner, Leanah you can take it after."

I paled, but nodded anyway, "Sure."

Sanji looked at me, "Leanah if you don't want to take watch, I'll take it."

I shook my head, "No, it's fine, I need something to get my mind off of things anyway." _I could use some sleep..._

Time passed slowly and it seemed that Nami was only getting worse. I curled up in the crow's nest with my coat and a blanket on. The sun was setting, this was getting very distressing.

"Leanah!" Sanji shouted up to me. "You can come down now! We're going to anchor the boat for the night and I'll take night watch!"

"Alright." I tied the blanket around my waist and slowly worked my way down, my fear wasn't getting any better, if anything it might've been getting worse. I sighed, I was too terrified for bed. _Another night... without sleep..._ I said to myself. I got to my feet, I walked into the room, only to see Luffy passed out with the picture frame digging into his forehead, Carue passed out not far away, and Vivi asleep by Nami's bed. I sighed and walked over to the desk, sitting down. A little later Usopp came down with a blanket, I didn't need to ask. "Grab a spot on the floor. I'll move the table."

"Let me help." The sharp shooter, dropped his blanket and helped me move the table out of the way so there was more floor space.

After that he camped a spot on the floor, in front of the desk. I sighed, moving to the wall and sitting down, then ran a hand through my hair. I reached over and grabbed my suitcase, popping it open. I fished out Shanks's bandana and holding it close, it was oddly comforting knowing that he'd been bragging about me. I frowned, he really was the closest thing I'd had to a father.

"Hey."

I jolted up, hiding the bandana. A shifty, slightly pink Zoro stood on the stairs with a blanket draped over his shoulder. "Zoro, I assume you're here for the same reason Usopp came." I gestured to the floor, "Pick a spot, any spot."

The swordsman camped out by Carue, using the duck as a pillow. He stared at me.

"What?" I asked.

"That thing in you hands.."

"It's nothing."

"You were holding on to if for dear life, its not nothing."

"Bandana." Simple answer, he nodded cover himself in his blanket and promptly fell asleep.

Usopp talks in his sleep, a lot. It was almost fun hearing the many sleep stories he told to the people in his mind. A while later Nami shifted in her bed, she sat up, looking out at all the people in the room, she jumped when Usopp started into another talking bit.

"Nami?" I asked quietly.

"Leanah... Why aren't you asleep?" she whispered back.

"Can't. But you should go back to sleep." I waved her down and she covered her entire body with the blanket, dutifully falling asleep again. I rested my head against the wall, I was so tired, but my body just wouldn't let me sleep.

That night passed slowly, quietly, and peacefully. Usopp woke up at around 5 AM.

"Where are you going?" I asked as he pulled his coat and shoes on.

"I can't just sit here, so I'm going to go see if I can't fix up what that freak did to the Going Merry yesterday."

I stood up, pulling on my coat and shoes, "I'll come too, I can't get to sleep anyway."

We went to the hold, "Have you been up _all night_?" he asked.

I expertly lied, "Not _all_ night." He shrugged and grabbed a huge armful of wood, "Wow..." I said softly, grabbing the tool kit, "Glad I managed to get as much as I did in Whiskey Peak."

"I am too." The two of us ventured out in the morning fog to the part of Merry that had been munched and began working.

Sanji must've fallen asleep because he woke up an hour later. He walked to the edge of the crow's nest and looked down at us, "You two are up early."

"How can I sleep when all I can think about is Nami and Merry?" I said.

"Can't jusht sit around doing nothing," Usopp mumbled through the nails he had in his mouth as he hammered in another wood plank, "We have to find a way out of this jam as quick as possible."

"You're right." Sanji said, "That's a good point..."

Another hour passed, Luffy and Zoro woke up, and subsequently so did Vivi and Carue. Then two more hours passed.

"I can do the rest of this." Usopp said as he hammered in the last board. "Go check on Nami."

We had taken to switching off on who went to check on Nami since everyone wanted too. Last it has been Luffy's turn, but he hadn't come out yet.

I entered the room and much to my horror saw Luffy attempting to get our sick navigator to laugh. I squeezed my eyes shut and hit him on the head, "I don't know what you're doing but I'm sure that won't help her get better!"

"Oww!" Luffy's hands protectively covered the spot I had hit. The idiot had written 'meat' on his forehead, somehow found Nami's make-up stash and taken the liberty of putting some on. "How could you know if you don't try!" He defended.

"I swear it's like I'm talking to a younger brother." I sighed and turned my back, signaling he could continue if he wanted.

I'm sure he had turned back to Nami, "Come on, Nami, why won't you look? This is weird, why won't you wake up and look?"

I honestly didn't hear Zoro come down until it was too late, "What's going on, Luffy?"

I whipped around, "No!" But it was too late, Luffy had turned around, mentally scarring our Swordsman for probably a week.

He fell back and Luffy stood up continuing it make his silly stretchy faces. "Quit it! You're freakin' me out!" Zoro said.

I closed my eyes again, "Please, Luffy, just stop!"

"Buh Nameh hashn't woken up yeh!"

"I think that might be a good thing!" I grabbed Luffy's hat and covered Luffy's face with it, dragging him out of the room.

When we got on deck Usopp stared at us weirdly, "Do I even want to know?"

"No." I said flatly, "You don't." I continued dragging a now kicking Luffy to the kitchen, I pushed him so he was sitting at the kitchen table and grabbed a wash cloth. "Honestly... I have no idea how your family dealt with you."

Luffy laughed as I removed his hat from his face and placed it on his head, then dampened the cloth. "Gramps left me with some really cool people after my 8th birthday!"

I frowned, trying to wash the word 'meat' off of his forehead, "What about your dad?"

"Never knew him. But I do have a brother!"

"Is that right?"

"Yeah!" Luffy crossed his legs, "He's really strong and cool, he left before I did to become a pirate!"

I laughed, imagining an older person who looked and acted like Luffy, then raised an eye brow, "Is everyone in your family a pirate?"

The captain laughed again, "Nah, Gramps is a marine!" He smiled, "What about your family?"

I paused, "Well... I don't remember my family..." I kept wiping the make-up off of his face. "But..." I couldn't help but think about Shanks. "My old captain was... kind of like a dad, I suppose. In fact... my old crew was pretty much like a big family."

"Hehe! Our crew is gonna be like that! We have lots of cool people, but eventually we'll have a huge crew! Like a musician!"

"And a doctor, let's focus on the matter at hand."

"Well of course a doctor! We'll get the one who fixes Nami up!"

And that was the end of that conversation. I finally got all the make-up off of his face and he sped back down to Nami's room I followed after him.

Zoro was still down there, I glared at him, "Zoro, shoes off when on carpet!"

"Eh."

I kept glaring at him and he kept not reacting. Eventually I sighed and walked over to my suitcase, opening it and getting out the plain black bandana, tying it around my head. Now I was ready for what ever was coming.

"Island dead ahead!" Sanji shouted from the crow's nest.

Luffy got excited at that, suddenly unable to sit still. "Are you serious! Oh, an island! We've found an island! Hey Nami did you hear that?! This means we can get you to a real doctor! He'll fix you up!" The captain then chanted 'wake up' to her, he obviously wanted to go see the mysterious new island.

Zoro sighed, "Just go look, we've got her covered."

Luffy sat there for exactly one second before he sped out of the room. "He forgot his coat."

"He'll be fine."

"It's freezing out there!"

"He'll be _fine_."

I stood up grabbing the captain's red coat, "I'll go give it to him."

"He'll be _fine!_"

"I don't care! It's freezing out there and he doesn't have a coat!" I left the room as Luffy rushed back in.

"COOOOOLLLLLDDDDDD!"

I sighed, holding out Luffy's coat, "I've got your coat here, Luffy."

He zipped passed me again, "THANK YOU, LEANAH!"

Zoro slowly sauntered out of the room, smirking, "Told ya."

I hissed at him.

We sailed inland a bit before Vivi found a spot that was good for us to anchor.

"Kay guys," Zoro said, turning to us, "Doctor's search, who wants in?" Then he added, "Guess we've got to find people here first."

Luffy threw a hand up, "I'm in!"

"Me too!"

"Count me in." I said.

"Bye!" Usopp said with his arms crossed, "Go have fun!"

"That's far enough, pirates!" A quick glance to where the voice had come from showed that we had been surrounded. But... These weren't marines, or even trained soliders, we seemed to be surrounded by villagers with guns and other forms of weapons.

"People!" Luffy shouted, then quieter, "Wull that was easy."

"Yeah, nice... but they don't seem too friendly." Usopp said, surveying them.

A large man in a odd looking green coat stepped forward, "I'll only say this once, your kind is not welcome here. Leave immediately."

"We only came here to find a doctor." Luffy said.

"We have someone who's sick!" Vivi shouted.

"You'll have to do better than that!" A different man shouted.

"This is our island! We won't let any filthy pirates land here!" Another man shouted.

Then another man, "Raise anchor and leave now, or we'll blow you and you ship out of the water!"

"That's great.." Sanji sighed, "We've barely said hello and they already hate us."

"This doesn't look to good," I mused, "We have to find a doctor here, we can't risk sailing any more."

"Get our of here!" Another man shouted, firing his gun at Sanji.

He dodged, then glared up at the person who shot at him, "That was a big mistake!"

I grabbed his arm, "Sanji, no! This isn't the time!"

Vivi ran in front of him, "Sanji, stop!"

A gun shot went off.

_**Bang!**_

Vivi fell.

**Author's Note****:**

Drum Island, Ho! How will our dear sleep deprived Leanah fare on this snow covered kingdom? How might she possibly contribute to this next grand adventure? And more importantly (in my mind anyway), how will she react to Chopper? some of these questions may be answered in the next chapter, some may not! The world may never know... until I publish them that is!

Just a heads up though, I'm going to be using the next week or so to get a head in my chapters so don't expect any new chapters next week! (Shh, I'm not evil, I just like cliff hangers).

Also I dedicate this chapter to Shanks, Mihawk, and Franky, since it is their birthday today.

Your ever willing author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	34. Bad connection and Drum Island's History

"No!" I ran to her side, "Vivi!"

"VIVI!" Luffy shouted, looking back at her, then turning to the men surrounding us, "WHY YOOOU!"

"Ready! Aim!"

I helped the princess up, checking her gun shot wound, it was minor, but that didn't mean she wasn't going to need to have it checked, "Vivi, are you alright?"

Luffy ran passed us, ready to attack, but the princess latched on to him, "No, stop it!" She said, "Fighting is not going to help anything! I'm fine, Luffy, it only grazed my arm." She turned, getting on her knees, "It's alright, we won't land," Vivi bowed so her head was touching the deck, "But can you please call us a doctor? Our friend is dying from a serious illness, I'm begging you, please help us!"

Luffy watched her, "Vivi..."

"You are not fit to be the captain of this ship, Luffy. Not everything can be fixed by rushing to start a fight!" She was right, fighting in that situation would've only made matters worse for us. "We can't get into a fight here, think about Nami, what would happen to her?"

There was a moment of silence, "Yeah, you're right. Sorry about that." Luffy turned to the people around us, "Please help us," Luffy dropped to his knees, bowing like Vivi was. His hat fell off of his head, "Call a doctor. Our friend needs you."

Another silent moment. "I'll show you to our village." The first man said, "Follow me." He turned and I realized he had a large weapon strapped to his back. He was most definitely trained as opposed to most of the others.

I sighed, "That could have gone a lot worse..."

Vivi looked at Luffy, "See? Just ask politely."

"Yeah, you're incredible, Vivi."

The princess smiled then stood up. "Well, let's get going, the sooner we can get to the village the better."

"I'll stay here with the ship." Zoro crossed his arms.

Sanji, Usopp, Luffy, Vivi and I all went down into the room, I grabbed my suitcase and the medkit.

"Why are you taking that?" Vivi asked.

"I want to at least bandage your arm before we get into town." I said, smiling at her, "We don't quite know how long it will take the doctor to get done examining Nami, and we can't have your wound get infected either."

Luffy grabbed onto my shoulders, "Leanah is right, we have to make sure you heal too!"

"You can't save your kingdom if your arm gets infected." I opened the kit and took out some bandages tore off a reasonable strip and tied it over Vivi's gun shot wound.

After that I walked out on to the deck and waited for the others. They came out very carefully with a bundled up Nami and exited the boat one by one, I got off last, turning to Zoro, "Keep warm, be safe, keep your bandages dry, if you leave Merry make sure you know your way back, don't do anything stupid!" I hopped off before he could say anything.

We trudged through the snow, I kicked it up with every other step, it felt so much better enjoying the snow on land, but, I couldn't muster up much energy, my lack of sleep was getting to me.

I felt like I had been drinking, but I know I hadn't, I hadn't had even a drop in three days. It was amazing I had even lasted that long, but I suppose the coffee I had been drinking had helped a little.

The large man leading the group turned to address us. "There is one thing I feel I should warn you about though, the only doctor we have here is actually a witch."

"Huh?" Usopp's eyes narrowed in disbelief, "A witch?"

"You've gotta be kidding me, everything about this island is messed up." Sanji moaned, walking carefully so as to not jostle Nami so much. "What do you people call this weird place anyway?"

I stared at the snow. My mind starting to wonder to other places.

"Actually this land still doesn't have a name." The man said.

"An island without a name?" Vivi questioned, "I didn't know that was possible."

"D..." I muttered to myself, "Teach..." Then I stumbled slightly.

"Are you alright?" A villager caught me and everyone came to a stop.

I smiled up at them, "Yeah, I'm fine, just lost my balance in all this snow, is all." Sanji narrowed his eyes at me, and I could tell he didn't believe a word I had said. "What are we waiting for?" I asked, pushing myself off the villager, "We need to find that doctor."

"AHHH! A BEAR!" Usopp screamed suddenly, "Hurry everyone! Pretend to be dead!" He keeled over into the snow. I looked at the large white bear, it was carrying a pick ax, _I'm not dreaming this either am I?_

The man leading us looked at the bear, "A hiking bear. He poses no threat to us. Don't forget to bow, it's proper manners."

As the bear crossed our path we bowed to it and it bowed to us and we continued on our separate paths. I got a shiver down my spine, glancing back the way we came, my idiot detector was going off, but I wasn't about to head back to the ship.

We arrived at the village not long after that, "This is the village where we live, its name is Big Horn."

Luffy and Usopp looked around with great interest, I crossed my arms, closing my eyes for just a second.

I swear, it was supposed to be a _second_!

"Leanah!" Luffy shook my shoulders violently. My eyes snapped open.

"What?" I looked around, Vivi and Usopp were looking at me with great concern. And that's when I realized... I'd fallen asleep. "Oh... Um..." There was really no way explaining around what had just happened, I just smiled, "Rough night last night. That's all. I'm fine. I swear."

Still Vivi walked over and led me to a house, "This is Dalton's house." She opened the door, "Rest in here."

I turned to the princess, "I don't need to rest! I'll be fine!" I was ushered into a chair by Sanji.

The chef turned to the man I assumed was Dalton. "We need to find a doctor for Nami as soon as possible, where's this 'witch' of yours?"

"The witch?" Dalton said, turning away from our navigator, "You see those mountains outside?"

Sanji slowly turned to the window, "Yeah.. I noticed them earlier." The window view was blocked by two monstrous snow creations.

"Super massive snowman!" Came Luffy's muffled voice from outside.

"And the feared snow beast Snowzilla!" Came Usopp's voice.

"GET IN HERE BEFORE I KILL YOU!" Sanji shouted.

"NO!"

The chef growled, exiting the house. Loud kicking noises and Usopp's (girly) screams were heard, and Sanji dragged both Usopp and Luffy back inside.

Dalton gave them tea to warm up and I simply smiled, politely refusing his offer to give me some. He nodded and put the tea away, "Those mountains out there are called the Drum Rockies." Sanji and Vivi had gathered at the window. "Look closely, do you see the castle on top the one in the middle?"

I can picture it perfectly in my head, the three tall cylinder like mountains, the tallest and proudest being the one in the center, with a grand little castle atop it. A kingless castle, but a castle needs not a king to be grand. But of course, that is now. Then I could barely keep my focus on something.

"A castle?" Usopp questioned.

"That castle has lost it's king..."

"Yeah, I see it up there," Sanji said staring up at it through the window.

"What's so important about that castle?" Vivi asked, turning to Dalton.

Dalton crossed his arms, "That Castle is where our land's on doctor lives. Doctor Kureha. She's the one who the people here call the witch."

I frowned. _Of all the names to sound familiar..._ I picked through my brain, spacing on most of the conversation, _Doctor Kureha... Ace...I know none of these people... yet I know their names. I wonder..._

"Hellooo." I blinked, that voice from inside Laboon was back. "Ah! I have a connection again! Hello Leanah. It's Aziraphale again."

I sat back in my chair. _Am I dreaming you?_

"Far from it." Aziraphale replied. "I've been having trouble tracking your movements lately, I never expected you to cause so little of a disturbance in this world."

_Disturbance?_ I asked.

"Yes, You see, you are, for lack of a better term, displaced. Someone went on a journey and you, my girl, were made a very unwilling passenger."

_You know who I was?_

"I do, but I am afraid that I cannot provide much help in getting your memories back. What has happened, is that your brain has created a completely natural block due to the pressure put on your body from arriving in such a rough manner as you did." Aziraphale paused.

_Aziraphale, I was found on a boat._

"I did have some time last minute to at least make sure you ended up here _safely_. I'm afraid though... the boat was all I could do. It took your body quite awhile to acclimatize to the energies in this world, you may have found yourself able to unlock powers it would take others their entire lives to use."

_My Haki, you mean._ I said to him.

"Yes, your Haki, that would have put an enormous strain on your body, it would have caused you a great deal of pain had you used it to often and to much, but those problems are behind you know, as you have finally acclimatized. You see, your body never had time to acclimatize during the travel unlike the other person sent here with you." He paused, almost as if in thought. "I do hope you two will never cross paths though, that would be detrimental to you both."

I jolted forward, _There's someone else like me here?! Someone who knows who I was?_

"Er..." Aziraphale seemed much more tight lipped about this topic, and for a good reason. "You wouldn't want to meet her in the condition you are in, and simply the necessary effort it would take for you to meet, it would be much better if you continued on as you are."

I was snapped out of the conversation with Aziraphale (and the connection, what unreliable service he gets!).

"LUFFY, YOU IDIOT WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO HER?!" Usopp, Sanji, and Vivi shouted at our captain who had been trying to rouse Nami.

"Hey look, she's awake!" Luffy looked at Nami, "Here's the thing, the only way to see the doctor is to climb the mountain. So we're gonna have to climb the mountain."

Short and simple. But... that was Luffy.

"Are you crazy?" Sanji asked, "What about Nami, how do you expect to get her up there?"

"Easy." Luffy said straightening up, "She'll ride on my back."

Vivi frowned, "That's only going to make her even more sick!"

"What's the problem?" Luffy wasn't seeing the many possible downsides to his plan... like always.

"But you'll never make it up there," the princess pointed out the window, "Look at how steep and tall that thing is!"

"Maybe you can," Sanji argued, "But climbing that thing would be way to hard on Nami!"

I turned in my chair slightly, looking at Nami, "Nami, what do you think?" I asked her.

Nami made obvious efforts to speak, "Ah... ahh.." Everyone looked at her, "I.. need to get over this thing... and quickly." She took a labored breath, "We need to hurry... for Vivi." She pulled her hand out from under the covers holding it out to Luffy, "Come on... Captain!" She smiled, "Let's go."

Everyone was amazed by her, Luffy just matched her smile and clapped her hand, "That's what I'm talking about, leave it to me!"

I sighed, sitting back and relaxing as everyone fretted over Nami and Luffy. I felt so tense even when I was relaxing, I just couldn't get the feeling out of my head that something was going to go very wrong. I pushed myself up from the chair, gaining most everyone's attention. "Sanji... you should go with Luffy, just in case."

The chef nodded, a look of grim determination on his face, "Right, I'm going."

The group moved outside Dalton's house, Vivi made sure Nami was secure on Luffy's back, then Dalton began telling of the dangers they might face on the road there. The Lapins sound far to much like large bunnies of doom for my taste.

Luffy assured Dalton they would be fine against said Large Bunnies of Doom.

"You can't be serious! Do you know how easy it would be for them to kill you?" He asked.

"We'll be fine!" Luffy said again before running off, "Hurry up, Sanji, before Nami dies!"

The chef glared at Luffy, running off after him, "Don't say stuff like that you idiot, do you wanna jinx us?"

We watched them run off into the distance, "Are you sure they'll be alright?" Dalton asked.

"Luffy and Sanji can handle themselves..." I said.

"Yeah, but they're not the ones we need to worry about." Usopp frowned.

"Nami's the one in trouble. I just hope her strength can hold out long enough," Vivi clasped her hands together, "She's getting sicker by the minute."

A spark of tensity shot through the air and jolted something out of my system.

Dalton walked towards his house, he got to the door and turned back to us, "Why are you standing there?" He asked, "Come on inside, it's cold out here."

Vivi held up her hands, "Oh no, that's really OK, we want to stay out here."

"Me too." Usopp said, shivering from the cold.

I nodded, looking around the village, there was something... something pricking in the back of my mind. God, I desperately just wanted to sleep but something in my brain that wouldn't let me.

The door to Dalton's house shut, "I see." We all looked over at him as the guard captain settled down, cross legged in the snow. He smiled up at us, "Well in that case, I'll join you."

We smiled at him, then focused on the mountains again, staring at the faint outline of the castle. After only a few moments my mind began to wander.

"We did once have some here on this island, you know." Dalton said suddenly.

"Huh?" That got my attention.

"Some doctors, however all of them left some time ago for certain reasons. They were very good at what they did while they were here." I nodded, crossing my arms for warmth. "We were even well known for the advanced medicine that was practiced here on this island."

"So what went wrong?" Vivi asked.

"A few months ago... We suffered a vicious attack." I bit my lip, hard. I just _knew_ what was coming. "And our country was destroyed, destroyed by _pirates_."

"Oh man!" Usopp exclaimed, "The whole country?!"

"God... that's terrible." I rubbed my arms, staring down at the snow.

"So that's the reason you acted that way when we showed up!"

"Yes. After the attack, the word pirate still terrifies everyone on this island. I'm sorry about the way we treated you." Dalton apologized. "Their group was small as well, only five people, their captain called himself Blackbeard."

Something seized in my chest, I didn't like that name, and I didn't know why.

"Their power was so incredible they destroyed our entire country faster than you would believe." He continued.

"And there were only five of them fighting?" Vivi was shocked, "That's impossible!"

"Blackbeard..." Usopp uttered.

"How horrible.." I said softly. That name sent an instant bolt of hatred through me.

"What's more," Dalton started, "There are some here who believe it was actually good for the country."

Vivi stepped forward, "What could possibly be good about that happening!?"

"That's crazy! Who would say something like that anyway?" Our sharp shooter shouted.

"What sort of terrible rule must they have been under?" I asked myself, "To feel the destruction of the country was best?"

Dalton smiled, "Thank you... I agree, but the people have their reasons. The man who ruled here was a horrible man, his rule was despised by all of the citizens. This country used to be named Drum kingdom and our king's name was Wapol. He was the worst king imaginable!"

_Wapol..._ "Wait..."

The realization set in all three of us almost instantaneously.

"Yes, I remember him, I know that man!" Vivi said.

"Not Wapol!"

"He was a king?" I shifted in the snow, _Maybe the destruction of the kingdom was best..._

Dalton looked up at us, "What that? You mean you know who Wapol is?"

"Know who he is?" Usopp asked rhetorically, "We know more then that, he's the pirate who attacked our ship not too long ago." he crossed his arms, "But... I took care of him... and now that I think about it... I do remember him saying something about heading to Drum Kingdom."

"He wanted an Eternal Pose or our Log Pose. We didn't give him either." I said.

"Yes," Vivi said, "There's no question about it now. I remember it clearly, I'm sure I met him once at a monarch meeting my father took me to." Vivi looked at Usopp and me, "I was still very young then... But I remember it to this day."

Dalton looked at Vivi oddly, "A monarch meeting?" Vivi realized what she just said, "Who are you?"

"Oh!" She immediately went on the defensive, "No1 I uh... Mm..." beat, "The point is," She said regaining her composure, "We do know Wapol, we ran into him yesterday, when we were on our way here."

"Yesterday?" Dalton asked, "Are you sure about that?"

"But then... I don't understand what's going on here... He said he was a pirate, he didn't say anything about being a king."

"He's just calling himself a pirate as some sort of disguise." Dalton surmised, "In truth Wapol is wondering the seas trying desperately to return to this island."

".. So then.. Wapol and the people on his ship kicked off the island because they were no match for the pirates?"

"I doubt that's the reason..." I mumbled.

Vivi just barely glanced at me, "Is that what happened?"

Dalton's face grew dark, "No. That's not it. When it happened..." He began shaking with fury, "When we were attacked, Wapol's army didn't even try to fight!" Vivi gasped in horror, "If fact, "Dalton continued, "As soon as he learned how strong the pirates were, Wapol grabbed his cronies and ran like a coward! He was the first one to abandon the country and flee out to sea!" Vivi was shaking with anger, she had been fighting for her country for two years against a seemingly unbeatable enemy and Wapol turned tail and ran at the first sign of trouble, leaving his people to die. "After that, the country felt utter despair. We were left behind by our king!"

"What sort of king would do that to his country?!" She shouted, "A king abandoning his people? Just the thought of that makes me absolutely _sick!_"

I reached out and pat her shoulder, "Vivi..."

"You're exactly right," The man agreed, "The one good thing that came out of it though was the end of Wapol's tyrannical rule. The people who are left on this island have come together now, we're trying to create a new country... So what we fear most right now is the return of Wapol and his followers, the return of his horrible rule. We can't afford for him to come back now with the country so unstable, it would be the end of us. We want to build ourselves a new, peaceful nation on this island."

We all fell silent. Understanding the predicament this new place was facing. Every country went through hardships, and this place's hard ship was sailing closer and closer to the snowy country.

**Author's Note:**

Sorry about taking so long, I got busy. Also I explain a few more things about dear Leanah and how she got there, and I explain about her amnesia. I swear it all gets fully explained when she meets this other person from her world.

For anyone wondering, she gets all her memories back during the Ocean's Dream Arc.

Also, Age change again, Sorry guys, I realized you can't be 17 and living in your own apartment. I know, I know, I'm unbearable. She's just a year older than she was before. Age wise she's older than Zoro, but younger than Sanji.

Your ever willing Author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	35. What Might Have Been 1st Ed

**Important note: **This is a non-canon chapter! **End important note! On with the story:**

I now realize that I was such a blatant optimist when it came to others problems, I figured that everyone's problems could be solved by just talking to them. Which, I guess, stemmed from all the problems I had when back when I was still on Shanks's ship by Shanks talking me into/out of doing something.

I quickly found out, that where Sanji was good at not getting my point. Zeff was an expert at ignoring people.

I walked into the kitchen, "Chef Zeff?" I asked stopping just behind him.

"Yes Leanah?" He asked, slowly stirring a pot of soup.

I gulped, "Well, I think you really pushed Sanji too far... Maybe you should go talk to him?"

He grunted and moved to a different section of the kitchen, I followed, "Chef, all he wants is a little recognition, all you'd have to do is tell him well done after a good job." Zeff just went about his business like I wasn't even there anymore.

"Will you just listen for a second?" I asked Zeff as he was taste testing some of the food to be served that day. He just kept his focus on the food and payed me no mind. "Ugh, Why are you so stubborn! I swear you and Sanji are cut from the same lopsided cloth."

Still nothing. I huffed, "You two are just too dang _thick_" I grabbed some plates and washed them to get out some frustration, and for some reason... I just wanted to get as many clean as possible, I had a bad feeling that some of them were going to be broken before the day was out.

Zeff eventually started to head for his room, I stopped him and said, "I tired, and I give up," I sighed, rubbing my forehead. "I know I said I was going to leave..." There was something... nagging at me. "I think I'm going to stay."

He grunted. I felt bad considering he had actually prepared things for my departure. Zeff turned, "If you're going to stay. Then get back to work! I don't pay you to tell me how to treat rotten brats."

I puffed my cheeks. He was such an ass, yet I could tell he and Sanji were close.

Since the other waiters had jumped ship it was up to Sanji and I to wait on the entire restaurant. Things weren't necessarily busy, pirates were a major pain in the ass though, as if they hadn't been before, it seemed they'd been coming more and more often now.

That day brought a cannon ball through the roof, right into Zeff's room. The offending person was dragged into the restaurant and brought to Zeff. The other person supposedly apart of the fiasco was a marine, and therefore given the up most respect.

I, unfortunately for him, was not his waiter, though I must say it would have been much better for him if I had. Sanji was his waiter, and he was already running on a short fuse, even after our talk.

First it was the wine, which Sanji and I had so generously donated to that couple, Amy and Rory.

"You should've at least humored him..." I said as Sanji returned to the kitchen.

"Don't care." Came his gruff reply, "That guy's full of himself, all I did was take him down a peg."

I sighed, this wasn't going to end anywhere good, I could just tell.

I was right. Sanji and I were making rounds around the dinning room, making sure everyone was satisfied.

"Waiter! Hey! Get over here!" It was that marine.

I looked at Sanji, "Let me take care of this." I was almost begging.

Sanji bit into his cigarette, "No, I got this." He walked over to the lieutenant.

I continued my rounds in the suddenly quiet hall, near as I could tell, Sanji flirted with the lieutenant's girl and then the lieutenant did the stupidest things possible. He tried to out-wit Sanji.

"What's this bug doing in my soup?"

"Well, sir. I really can't say. But it looks like he's floating, then again it kind of looks like he's drowning." That got chuckles from everyone in the restaurant, I gripped the edge of my apron. This wasn't going to end well at all.

The lieutenant had had enough, "Don't you mess with me, Waiter!" He smashed the table, ruining it and the food on it.

I ran over, "Sanji." I whispered urgently as he bent down, "Sanji, please! Don't do anything rash!"

He wasn't listening, "You could have eaten it if you had just taken the bug out..." He addressed the lieutenant, "It would have been wonderful. It took three full days of hard cooking to prepare that soup for you, and you wasted it."

"Sanji!" I whispered again, just as the lieutenant stamped on Sanji's hand. Strike two in Sanji's mind.

"Can't you see that you're biting off more than you can chew?" The marine twisted his foot, digging his heel into the back of Sanji's hand. "I'm the customer here! Don't you understand that it's me paying you?!"

The lieutenant's female companion ran to his side, "Fullbody, stop!" I wondered if she was getting the same feeling I was.

I bent down slightly, "Sanji, please, calm down."

Fullbody pushed the woman off of him, sending her flying to the ground. "Shut up!" And that would be strike three.

I looked up at the marine, then at his companion who had tears in her eyes, and stepped back. A good friend pulls you back from anything, a great friend knows when to let you rip into someone.

"Can your money... truly satisfy your hunger?" Sanji asked.

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"I'm asking..." Sanji looked up at the marine, "Can it satisfy your _hunger_?" In a flash Sanji had removed his hand from under the lieutenant's shoe and kicked the man near the point of needing hospitalization. He held the lieutenant by his chin.

The doors opened at that moment and chefs ran down from the kitchen to check what the all the noise was about.

"Don't _ever_ waste food around me _again_." Sanji said dangerously, "At sea, if you ever provoke your cook, you're signing your own death warrant, remember that."

Pasty walked out a short time after that, I turned, letting him and Sanji duke it out, there were customers waiting to be seated.

I walked over to the door, a smile on my face, "Excuse me." I said, gaining the attention of the three people standing there, "Pardon my colleagues, as you can see, we've been having some trouble lately, an-" There was a crash, I turned, Zeff and the kid who blew a hole in the roof were on the floor. "Chef Zeff!"

Even that did not deter Sanji from his intent to kill the marine lieutenant. He kept trying until Zeff addressed him directly, and even issued a kick to him. Then Fullbody was issued the same treatment.

I sighed, turning to the three again, "Actually... You might just want to come back later... or.. A different day, a different day would be much better."

They all nodded, and took my advice, just in time to miss a pirate break out of the marine ship.

This guy was a type two and a type three, though considering, he was really just a type three.

I cringed every time Pasty kicked the man, anyone could see he wasn't strong enough to fight back, but still everyone cheered Pasty on. I couldn't take it anymore, my brain felt like it was going to explode, I didn't like this feeling, I didn't _want_ to feel this feeling.

I left practically running to the rooms. I sat on my bed, pressing my hands to my head. _What's wrong with me?! Why does my head hurt?_ I groaned, something about being here at this time made my head hurt, a pain welled in my chest. But... it wasn't like, a really pain, but an emotional one.

I lay down, and slept.

I woke up the next day, got chewed out by some of the other chefs about how incompetent the new chore boy was, and how it was irresponsible it was of me to just run off. I sighed, prying my sword from the door and going outside. Practicing had always cleared my head before.

I took a large breath of the morning air, fresh and refreshing. I slowly drew my blades and went through several slow, deliberate motions, then speeding up, leading into training my techniques.

I was completely engrossed in my morning practices, usually left uninterrupted, I almost didn't notice the person now watching.

"Please, don't just stand there. It's off-putting." I said, twirling my kogatana in my hand and sheathing it. "I don't normally have people watching, so an audience is new."

The person watching stepped forward, "You didn't have to stop." I cast a glance at the green haired man.

"Eh, I was nearing the end anyway." I sheathed Amaterasu. "I'm Leanah."

The man crossed his arms, "Zoro."

I eyed the three swords hanging at his side "Three-swords style. There's been lots of talk about you." I held out my hand, "Pleasure to meet a fellow swordsperson."

He glanced down at my hand, then shook it.

".." I let go, "Soo... There's about an hour until the restaurant opens... Any chance I might.. I don't know, possibly challenge you to a duel?"

He smiled, "You're on."

We fought straight up to the opening of the Baratie.

Just before the end, I cut downward, my attack almost catching him off guard, my blade barely an inch over his chest.

And it was like a bomb went off in my brain. I saw Zoro, beaten and crying, a deep cut across his chest, a cut that would become a scar he would carry for the rest of his life, a reminder of the promises he had made.

I stumbled back, dropping my swords. I let out a shaky breath. "Do you.." I began, "Do you have a scar going across your chest?" I asked, staring at him.

He gave me an odd look, "No. Why would I?"

I shook my head, "No reason, I just..." I stared at the sea behind us, "Never mind, it doesn't matter." I quickly sheathed my swords, "My shift starts soon, I need to get going." Then before letting him reply, I used the employee's entrance and locked it behind me.

Nothing made sense anymore. It felt so familiar. Seeing Zoro with a scar across his chest, but according to him, he didn't have one, and we had never met before now.

"Heck..." It was like knowing Sanji's name all over again.

The shift started, and oh the surprise when I found myself staring a a black haired teen wearing a straw hat. I blinked, he had a scar under his eye, and was smiling with a large, almost infectious smile. It was like he'd jumped out of the stories Shanks had told about that young Luffy that he had known 8 years ago.

He waved his hand in front of my face, "Hello?"

I snapped out of it, "Sorry, you just... remind me of someone, that's all." I held my hand out, "I'm Leanah."

"I'm Luffy." _He's gotta be the Luffy Shanks was always talking about._

"Pleasure to meet you, Luffy." I turned slightly, "Now, today you'll be working with me since you apparently caused quite a ruckus yesterday, what with breaking a lot of good plates and well as causing a scene in the hall.

He seemed to grumble, but followed me dutifully, only spacing out a minimal amount of times, and not breaking anything.

I seemed to be the only on in the entire kitchen who could keep Luffy in somewhat of a line, so I just got saddled with making sure he didn't do anything to crazy.

This kid was a little ball of energy. When he wasn't blabbering about how unfair it was that he had to work for a whole month he was talking about how as soon as he was out of here he was going to go to the Grand Line and become king of the pirates.

I was now completely sure, this _was_ Shanks's Luffy. There was no other possible explanation.

I rolled my shoulders back, having just finished the last of the orders for now. "Leeeeaaaannnnaaaahhhh..." Luffy whined, "Are we done yet?"

"For now." I replied. "If you want to go visit your friends, I don't see why not." The young boy bounced out of the kitchen. I sighed, he was a lot like Shanks, only not an alcoholic and younger.

The kitchen was full of chefs enjoying the small relief.

Sanji presented me with lunch, "Leanah, my darling."

I took the plate, smiling. "Thank you, Sanji." I ate, "Hey.. about the chore boy, Luffy?"

"Yeah, what about 'im?"

"He's a little... Odd. Isn't he?"

Sanji nodded, lighting a cigarette, "Odd is an understatement. He asked if I would join his crew yesterday."

I laughed, "And you said no."

"Of course I did."

"Seriously, though." I said between bites, "That Luffy is an odd kid. He's got as much energy as most of my old crew. He's a lot like my old captain."

"That red haired guy you arrived with?"

I nodded, "Yeah. Him." I scarfed down the rest of the food, "I should probably get back out there, just in case anyone wants a refill or more food."

Sanji nodded, taking my plate, "I'll be out shortly after you. You're gonna need help, my-"

"I can do it on my own, Sanji." I turned, "'Sides, if I do need help I'll have Luffy."

He took a drag from his cigarette, "That idiot is going to end up messing up half the orders and eating the other half."

I smiled, "That's why I said _if._ I'm used to this now." I turned on my heel and traipsed out into the hall, notepad in hand.

Luffy followed be around like a puppy, whining about how bored he was. Occasionally I would tell him to go clean the walls or something where he wouldn't be near anything vital, but he always got bored and came back.

Peace was returned to the Baratie, pirates seemed to keep their distance. Which was good for us. Unfortunately peace always ends with a bang.

About a week had passed since Luffy and his crew arrived, Zoro and I sparred in the mornings, then he would disappear back to their ship when my shift started, we were fairly evenly matched, but he was still better than I was. Eventually I got myself acquainted with the rest of Luffy's crew, Nami, their navigator and money hoarder, Johnny and Yosaku, not actually members of the crew but apparently old acquaintances with Zoro. And Usopp, who looked just like his dad only his hair was darker and he had a longer nose.

Zoro and I had just finished sparing, I lost. He corrected my technique in a few areas, and I pointed out how open a few of his moves were. My shift started, I got Luffy into the kitchen- but away from the food.

I sighed, "Luffy, could you focus for a second." The captain gave me his attention, "OK, I want you to listen carefully, today is going to be the same as yesterday, you follow?" He nodded, "Meaning: no eating the food, no breaking the plates, no harassing guests, and no taking the guest's food."

"I know this." He whined, "You tell me this everyday!"

I pinched his ear and twisted it, "And I'll keep telling you until you stop doing those things!"

He made a face, "OK. OK. I get it..."

I had to bite my tongue to keep from mentioning either Shanks or Yasopp. And there I was, one foggy morning, thinking about them and I just, "Hmm..."

"Leanah, are you alright?"

I looked at Sanji, "Yeah..."

* * *

><p>This battle was insane! First Ghin returned with the rest of his crew, then out of the goodness of Sanji's heart he gave the captain some food. And then he tried to take the Baratie.<p>

He had given us a choice, stay and die, or leave and live. What he didn't realize is that everyone on the Baratie would fight to the death to protect it.

With amazingly strengthened resolve we all waited for Don Krieg to inevitably being the battle.

But, before that, we all got a little insight into what had happened to the fifty ship fleet.

My grip tightened on Ami. One man who could destroy fifty ships... Shanks fit the bill in my mind, but he wouldn't have done something like that. No, my mind was drifting to a different picture. A different man entirely. Shanks rarely spoke about times before Luffy, but when he did, you could always count on hearing a story about one man he used to spar with... A shiver shot down my spine.

"Hawk-eye Mihawk!" Zoro said.

I glance up at Zoro, he had mentioned his ambition to me one morning after we trained together. My mind drifted, and I saw the scar again, _I could I be... seeing the future?_ I shook my head. _Nah. That's crazy._

After a short fight about have the right to call someone and idiot, and Zeff joking around (Ghin did not find the jokes very funny), everyone gathered out on the deck of the Baratie. Ready to fight.

I shivered again, a large prickly feeling settling on the back of my neck. I turned slowly, staring out passed the large ship.

"Is something wrong, Leanah?" One of the chefs asked.

I focused my eyes. "Someone's out there..."

"Yeah, Don Krieg and his men."

I shook my head. "No... Someone different... Someone... stronger." I didn't like the feeling I was getting. "I can't explain it but... I just... _know_ that someone's coming."

I bit my lip, I never liked a foreboding feeling.

Tension saturated the air, Luffy and his crew had disappeared to the side of the ship, apparently something had happened to Johnny, Yosaku, Nami, and their ship.

Then, Don Krieg's ship split in two.

The pure shock broke the tension, the split was so clean, it almost looked like a sword had done it. But... _ A sword being able to cut a ship __**that**__ size? No..._ I stared back out at the sea. "Impossible!" I gulped seeing what appeared to be a boat sailing closer.

"Over there!" A man from Krieg's fleet shouted, "It's that man!"

"He came back!"

"Hawk-eye... Mihawk..." I said under my breath, "So Shanks wasn't exaggerating..."

The chefs expressed varying degrees of disbelief.

"It looks like all he's got is a sword. You can cut a ship with a sword, it's impossible!"

I laughed nervously, "In order to earn the title of Greatest in the World you have to be able to do a few impossible things... Like cut a ship in half with a sword."

* * *

><p>I swam out to the boat, pulling myself into it, "Usopp.. Do you have a medical kit?"<p>

"Just some medicine." He frantically handed a basket containing medicine and gauze to me. "But... What are you going to do?"

I stared at the basket as he helped Johnny and Yosaku hoist Zoro onto the ship. "I was training to be a nurse before..." _Before what?_ "I became a pirate." _That's right... I was... wasn't I? I was... going to Xavier's pre-med program..._ I opened the medicine and tended to Zoro's wounds. He would live. The cut wasn't deep, but it would most definitely scar.

I patched him up the best I could, ignoring what was going on around me.

"Please say something!" Johnny and Yosaku pleaded, "Anything."

"He's going to need a lot of rest.." I muttered.

Usopp checked Zoro's pulse, "He's alive!" He shouted, informing everyone. "He's just unconscious!"

The bounty hunters were crying, "If you're alive then say something, Zoro!"

"Hush." I said, "He just suffered a major wound!"

Still, he grabbed his sword from Johnny and unsheathed it, holding it in the air.

"Lu-" He coughed, "Luffy. Can you hear me?"

"Yeah."

He coughed again, "Gah... I'm So.. Sorry for disappointing you. I know you need nothing less than the greatest swordsman in the world. I've let you down... Please forgive me." Another cough and blood came up.

Yosaku hovered over him, "OK! OK, you can stop saying things now!"

"I solemnly swear..." Zoro pressed his other hand over his eyes, he was beginning to cry, "From this moment forward... That I will never lose again, until the day comes, When I defeat him and take his title! I will never, never be defeated! Is that alright, King of the Pirates?!"

Luffy laughed, "Yep!"

I stood up, "Luffy!" I shouted, "I hope you don't mind, but I'd like to stay with Zoro until his wounds heal. Is that Alright?"

The captain nodded, "Yeah, sure, that's fine!"

I addressed everyone, but the message was meant for one person in particular. "Give Red Hair regards from Leanah when you see him."

That confused most everyone except a few Baratie members and the intended recipient of the message. Who turned without a word, got in his boat, and left. I sat down next to Zoro and continued tending his wounds.

"Usopp, could you fill me in on what's going on?" I asked.

"Our ship was taken, We're going to get it back."

I nodded, "Simple enough."

Luffy gave us the OK to leave, and we left.

I frowned, pulling the gauze out of the basket."Could you guys... Help me get Zoro's shirt off?"

"What?!" Johnny and Yosaku surrounded me.

"What are you planning to do to Big-bro Zoro?"

I glared at the two of them, "I want to get some gauze on his wounds so that he'll stop bleeding as quickly, and unless Zoro wants that shirt to heal into his skin, I suggest we take it _off_." I was apparently terrifying, as they immediately did what I suggested. They all gathered near the back of the boat and left me to do my thing. I sighed, and applied the gauze to the cut on his chest. "Well, you'll live... but... you'll have a scar going across your chest."

He looked at me oddly. I wanted to say that it was some pure, insane coincidence that I had asked about a scar like the one he would have days before he got it. But... I couldn't.

After I had finally bandaged his wound I stood up, he caught my arm. "How did you know..?"

I smiled, a hint of bitterness creeping in my system, "When I find out, I'll tell you."

**Author's Note:**

A Special chapter for April Fools day. We get a peek at what I call the Plot Point Graveyard. This was all from an early early first draft of the story, which I abandoned because I had no idea how to fit her into Kokoyashi village without making it look suspiciously like she and Zoro or Sanji were going to end up in a relationship. (Not that it did much since to my author eyes I see a strange non-love triangle forming anyway...)

You'll notice there's a gap there in the middle, yeah, that's because I was not good at all at describing conflict back then. You'll also notice that this is the first edition, meaning on other special occasions I will bring a plot point from the graveyard and show you lovely readers What Might Have Been.

Also Happy Birthday Usopp! *claps*

Your Ever Willing Author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	36. Doctor Kureha and her assistant Chopper!

The snow began falling harder, we eventually looked back up at the Drum Rockies. I was getting so much idiot detector overload, I almost wanted to run towards the Rockies myself, but in the state I was in I couldn't even fool myself into thinking I'd be much help.

I stared up at the mountains, "I wish I could've gone to help them..."

"Hm.. The snow 's really staring to pick up, huh?"

"Yeah.." I bit my lip.

Vivi seemed to be praying. "Tell me something," Dalton said, drawing our attention, "Just who are you guys?"

"Why do you ask that?" Usopp asked.

"You're a group of only seven people traveling the Grand Line on a ship without a doctor. That seems incredibly reckless."

"Well... Before now Nami and I could handle most of the medical emergencies that happened..." I said.

Usopp turned towards Dalton, "Yeah, and in case you forgot, we're pirates, that's the reason you guys were pointing all those guns at us, remember? Now we may be a small group, true," He crossed his arms, "But with a brave warrior of the sea on board, there's no reason to worry about anyone or anything."

"... OK."

The sharp shooter raised a fist in the air, "Even though we are very brave, we _are_ looking for someone to be the ship's doctor, in fact I was really hoping we'd find one here on this island, but of course what I wasn't expecting was that the doctor here would be a witch living in a castle." He pointed to the castle.

"Well, she's all we have."

I sniffed, "I don't know, I'm fairly hopeful," I said turning to Dalton, "Could doctor Kureha be training an apprentice of some kind?"

The man smiled, "Doctor Kureha is a very isolated woman, we're lucky she makes semi-regular trips to the villages."

"Oh.." I was still hopeful though, something was telling me we would find a doctor here. I sighed, turning back to the mountains.

"You certainly seem to be a lot different from the pirates we're used to."

"Oh!" A different voice said, "Hello Dalton!" I turned to look, it was a woman, but my god... she was the size of a _freaking bear!_ "I was looking for you."

"What can I do for you?" He asked as Usopp bowed, I tugged gently on his hood, pulling him upright.

"Not a Hiking Bear." I whispered to him.

He looked embarrassed.

"I heard the new comers were looking for doctor Kureha." The bear-sized woman said.

"Yes, but the sick woman's friends have already taken her up the mountain." Dalton stood up.

"Oh, that's to bad, because I heard that the doctor is in Cocoa Weed right now."

Beat.

"SHE'S WHERE!?" We all shouted.

"SO NAMI AND THE OTHERS ALREADY PASSED HER!?" Usopp nearly screamed.

Dalton ran into his house and grabbed several things, then quickly ushered Vivi, Usopp, and me into a sleigh. We left Big Horn post haste, intending to catch doctor Kureha before she left he village of Cocoa Weed.

It was a fairly large red sleigh, being pulled by two rather sizable reindeer. I was shielding my eyes from the snow, standing in the back using Vivi's shoulder to keep stable as we gained speed. Usopp sat to her left and Dalton in front working the reins.

"I'm sorry," Dalton apologized, "This is my mistake. I was aware that the doctor had come to town for the mountain in the last few days, I had assumed that she had left and wouldn't be back for quite some time."

"Don't worry about it," Usopp shouted over the sound of the reindeer pulling the sleigh, "This isn't your fault, the problem here is how abnormally strong Luffy and Sanji are. Even if we go up the mountain after them there's no way we'd be able to catch up to them!"

"Usopp is right, the best we can do now is hopefully catch doctor Kureha and tell her they are heading up the mountain looking for her!" I shouted.

"You're right," Vivi said, "It's true, we have no other choice."

Dalton leaned forward, "Forgive us." He said suddenly, "Forgive this land for not having more doctors."

"Don't say that!" Vivi said, "This isn't something you should be apologizing for, Dalton!"

Usopp nodded, "She's right, you know!"

"Let's hurry!" Dalton said as he cracked the reins.

We sped through the snow, I just barely caught sight of a sign for a town called Gyasta, I blinked, _There. We need to go there._ I thought desperately, _Gyasta is where we need to go!_ "Dalton!" I shouted, "Slow down a sec!"

He did as requested, "Why?"

I let go of Vivi's shoulder, "I have some business in Gyasta," I lied, "You guys head on to Cocoa Weed!" I hopped out of the sleigh, rolling into a snow drift.

"Wait!" Usopp shouted, "But you can barely stand!"

"I'll be fine!" I shouted back, "Just go get doctor Kureha!" I slowly got to my feet. _Gyasta... I've never even heard of this town!_ I frowned as they disappeared from sight. _Why? Why did I do that?_ I shivered from the cold, taking several unsteady steps towards the town.

I crossed my arms, hugging myself for warmth. "Perfect... I have no idea why I'm going to this stupid town, and I can't even... even..." I blinked trying to keep my thoughts straight, _What did I do two days ago?_ I thought, completely loosing any train of thought. _I... can't remember... Is this some off set effect of my amnesia? Then again... what did I do a couple months ago?_

I swayed more than before, now that I had no real distraction from my exhaustion, I was feeling the full effects. Every step took more effort and concentration I didn't have. I think the only thing keeping me going was the odd determination that flamed in my soul then, pushing my forward towards a goal I couldn't see.

The snow and trees seemed endless on the slim path between the road to Cocoa Weed and Gyasta. I blinked, faltering slightly then lurching forward. I almost wanted to pass out right there in the road, I shook my head as pictures began to play in front of my eyes, things I know couldn't have been real.

Fire places don't appear on a snowy road, old friends aren't faceless nameless people offering comfort, and young blond males you've met don't just reappear after only having met them once in a town you left seven days ago.

"Leanah," The male said, "You're pushing yourself to hard!" He sounded very familiar now, "Please, return to Big Horn!"

I shook my head, "No... I... I.. can't." I said slowly heading passed him. "Have to... Get Doctorine..." I squinted, and saw something moving along the path in front of me. My heart lifted, "Doctor Kureha!" I shouted, breaking into what had then felt like an effortless run, "Doctor Kureha!" The sleigh didn't seem to be slowing down, I pushed myself to run faster, now screaming, "DOCTOR KUREHA, PLEASE STOP!"

The sleigh slowed to a stop, and I jogged up next to it, huffing and feeling like I was going to cough up my lungs. "Yes?" The woman in the sleigh said.

"Do... Doctor..." I leaned on her sleigh for support, I looked up at her, she dressed like she was a twenty year old on some sandy beach, cherry blossoms adorned her shirt and pant leg, but my mind was focused (or trying to, anyway) elsewhere. "Please... You.. you need.. to return to the mountain... my..." It was hard to get a solid breath, "friends... they-"

"Tell me..." The doctor said suddenly, "Are you happy?"

I blinked, "Wha-?"

Doctor Kureha repeated the question, then went a little deeper, "The way you carry yourself, it makes it look lie you're not comfortable in your own skin, that and the dark circles under your eyes. You haven't been getting much sleep have you?"

I gulped, it had been less than two minutes and she already had me diagnosed.

"Tell me, how long have you been awake?" She flicked her sunglasses up and her glasses down, sizing me up.

I felt like I'd shrunk, "... It doesn't matter, I'm not here to talk about me. My friends-"

"You're not going to be much help to your friends if you're killing yourself to help them. Chopper."

The reindeer pulling the sleigh responded the to the unspoken command and before I knew it I was an unwilling passenger on the sleigh, with a blanket covering me. All my brain registered at that moment was warmth and a comfy place. I was out like a light.

I opened my eyes, there was a large static... thing in front of me. It could only be described as a tear I guess. I started around it, white, then through it, more white... But then I saw a man looking through the other side. "Hey! Who're you?" I called out, hesitantly moving closer.

It seemed he was doing the same. "I'm Leahon."

I laughed, a little uneasily, "Funny... I'm Leanah."

He laughed. "That's... uncanny."

I tugged on my bandana, I was now close enough to be able to see Leahon. He looked... like me. Well, he was a little taller than me, probably 5" 11' _maybe_ 6" 0', he had on a bandana as well. It was freaky. "Um... Are you... a pirate?"

He nodded, tugging his bandana off. "I'm a Mugiwara Pirate."

"I'm a straw-hat Pirate."

"Heh.. I'm sure you are." He seemed disbelieving, "My captain is Monkey D. Luffyko."

"Luffyko?" _This must be a joke._ "You're joking. My captain is Monkey D. Luffy."

"Right... sure. And your captain's bounty is-"

"30 Million?" I guessed. "And I bet you've even got a swordsman on your cr-"

"_I'm_ the swordsman on our crew, but we have a swordswoman named Roronoa Zorina."

"Three... swords?" I asked hesitantly.

"Yep."

"There's a swordsman on my crew named Roronoa Zoro who uses three swords."

We both shivered, there was a disturbing pattern forming here.

"Do you... have amnesia?"

Leahon nodded slowly. "Yeah..."

We inspected each other closely. "Weird." I said. "Did you wake up in the care of the Red Hair Pirates?"

"Red Hair...?" He seemed to be thinking, "Do you mean Akagami? Shana-sensei's crew?"

"Three scratches over their eye?"

He nodded, "Yeah, and left arm missing?"

"Shana is Shanks for me."

He smiled, he was really getting into this, "And what about Usoni-chan and her mother, Yasoni-san?"

"Usopp and Yasopp. Benn Beckman?"

"Benjimina Beckman."

"It's like... We're living the same lives... only..."

"Genderflipped." Leahon said.

"That's so cool!" We both said at the same time.

I sighed, "What about our memories though?"

"Did you... hear that weird voice in Labooni?"

"It called me Jennifer..."

"Jeremy..."

We both tilted our heads, "Could those be... our real names?"

We crossed out arms, this was really surreal. I bit my lip, he bit his.

I held out my hand, it almost went through the tear-thing. "Well... pleasure meeting you, Leahon."

He reached out to take my hand, "And you as well."

The white room flashed around us and went dark. I squinted through it, only barely being able to see Leahon on the other side of the tear.

"My my... That won't do.." A feminine voice said.

"Constants and variables, sister. It was bound to happen eventually." A masculine voice replied.

"Who are you..." I started.

"And why are you here?" Leahon finished.

There was a soft sound of something being flicked through the air, I reached out and grabbed it. It was just a coin.

"Heads, tails." The masculine voice said.

"Leanah, Leahon." The feminine voice continued, "Rosalind, Robert."

"It's all perspective."

"What the hell does _that_ mean!?"

The silence weighed in the air as I realized, did _I _said that or did Leahon say that? I couldn't tell.

"Oh my. I fear we might have been a moment to late."

"Indeed, it does seem they've formed a bond."

"I suppose there's only one thing to do now..."

The world around me turned completely staticy, flashes of white and grey.

I jolted awake, laying in a bed as apposed to in the sleigh. "What was that?" I whispered.

"Odd dreams?" A voice asked.

"Odd... is an understatement..." I looked over at doctor Kureha, and several things came to my attention. I was now in an actual bed, in a castle, _the_ castle I assumed, "How long was I out?"

"Not long." she laughed, she sure sounded like a witch. "We brought your friends in not to long ago."

I sat up, looking around the room and spotting Nami on a bed not to far away. "Nami!" I looked at the doctor, "Is she going to be OK?"

Kureha laughed again, "She'll be fine, you got her here just in time."

"What about Luffy and Sanji? Are they OK?" I asked.

"If you mean the boy with no coat and the man with the spinal injury, yes. They'll be fine."

"No... coat?" I said softly, "Spinal... injury?" My brain processed through that information slowly. "..." I frowned, "Yeah... that's them." I could picture it clearly in my head. Luffy laying on a snow covered ground with out a coat and badly bloodied hands, Sanji passed out after having revived a major jolt to his spine, and Nami with her deathly red face, fighting for survival.

The doctor moved to a desk not to far away, "I hope you don't mind, but Chopper and I took off your coat and gave you an examination."

I blinked, now realizing my sleeves had been rolled up, and scars clearly visible. I froze.

Kureha walked over, I sighed as she checked my arms, "Some of these are very deep," She observed, "And others didn't heal properly."

"Hnn..." I turned my head so I could look in the other direction.

"You don't remember how you got these do you?" I shook my head, "Do you have amnesia?" Nod. "Have you had it for a long time?" Nod. "How long?"

I begrudgingly answered, "Little over a year, I woke up on my previous captain's boat and could only remember a few things."

"And your memory been getting worse over the past few days?" She guessed.

"Yeah, but it's just my amnesia again, I bet."

Doctor Kureha shook her head, "No, that's not it. How long have you been awake?"

I glanced over at Nami, checking if she was really sleeping, I bit my lip, then answered. "About three days... Vivi wasn't getting much sleep so I told her I would watch over Nami while she rested, then Zoro would stop trying to train at his usual level with his stitches in, so I had to make sure he didn't break his stitches.. Then Sanji began over exerting himself soo.."

"You kept taking on more and more things until you ended up staying awake for three days straight."

For some reason I felt guilty about having done that, _Weak, even when you're trying to be strong, you're weak. And your 'friends' didn't even notice._

I was snapped out of my thoughts by doctor Kureha pinching my bottom lip between her index finger and thumb, adding some ointment to it before letting go.

I licked my lip out of curiosity, "Euck!" I cringed at the taste, "What did you put on my lip?"

"It's an ointment that'll heal your lip as well as stop you from biting it. You've probably done it so often you don't conscientiously think about it anymore." I drooped, pursing my lips. Kureha turned, "Now you get some more rest, now. Chopper will be by soon to check on you and the other girl."

_Chopper? _I thought, _The reindeer?_ I shrugged, turning on to my side, _Weirder things have happened._ I closed my eyes and got a little more sleep.

I was rudely awoke not long later. "SHUT UP, LADY!" A small voice shouted, "Oh, and can you tell me how you're fever is doing?"

"IT'S TALKING!?" I heard Nami shout, probably starling the other person because there was a loud commotion soon after.

I groggily pushed myself into a sitting position, rubbing my eyes, "What's going on?" I asked before doctor Kureha shouted to us.

"KEEP IT DOWN, CHOPPER!"

_Chopper? Right... the reindeer._

"Leanah?" Nami asked looking at me.

"Nami! You're awake! That's amazing." I smiled, quickly rolling down my sleeves.

Kureha laughed, watching from the doorway, looked exactly the same as when I had seen her god-knows-how-long-ago, only now she was holding a bottle of something. "You're fever seems to have gone down, and some sleep seems to have done you some good. You happy?" She asked.

"Doctor Kureha..." I mumbled as the doctor walked over and put a finger to Nami's forehead, taking a large drink.

Nami was utterly confused, as she didn't hear me, "Who are you?" The navigator asked.

"Yes.." The doctor mused to herself, "It's gone down several degrees. Oh right," She turned to Nami, removing her sunglasses, "I'm the only doctor around here, doctor Kureha, but you can call me Doctorine, okay?"

"Oh," Nami understood she looked out the window behind her, "So that means we're..."

"Looking for how I stay so young?" Doctorine asked.

"No... That's not it." Nami looked around, you could see a train of thought being to form.

I smiled again, happy to see Nami awake.

Doctorine took a large drink from her bottle, "Anyway, yes, you're in the castle on the mountain." She walked over and pushed me down from the sitting position, "You need some more rest." She said.

The navigator looked at the doctor, "In that case there were two other people who showed up here with me weren't there?"

As soon as Kureha turned away I sat up again. "Yeah, they're sleeping in the next room very deeply, two real tough guys." Nami sighed in relief as Kureha sat on the bed next to her, pulling Nami's shirt up slightly. There was what appeared to be a large purple bruise on her stomach. "This is what caused your sickness."

"Wow..." She looked down at the infected area, "Really?"

"You were bitten a bug called the Kestia." _So... I was right, it was Kestia..._ "It's a poisonous tick that thrives in jungles with high heat and humidity. When it bites you it introduces a type of bacteria into your body. These bacteria lay dormant for five days, causing severe pain." Doctorine crossed her legs, "It causes a high fever, severe infection, myocarditis, and arthritis. Not pleasant. Given the infection's progression in the effected area, I'd guess you've been infected for about three days, now. The pain you've been feeling must've been terrible but still it would've eased up in two more days without any treatment at all."

"It would have gone away in two days?"

"Not... in the sense you're thinking..." I said slowly.

"Uhuh, you wouldn't be feeling any pain what-so-ever because you'd be dead." The doctor said flatly, Nami certainly didn't take that very well. "This particular infection is known as the five-day disease. I had hear that kestia died out over a hundred years ago, but I kept the antibiotic just in case. Where did you guys come from that you might've been exposed to this? Were you walking around some ancient jungle with your belly showing?" She chuckled, "No, ridiculous."

"Uhhhmmmm..." I blinked. I could think of exactly when Nami got that bite. I hadn't thought much of it then, but Nami had her shirt off in Little Garden before we left. That must have been when she got bitten.

"Aaahhhhhh..." Nami had the exact same look I did on her face.

"Does this situation sound familiar at all? What crazy people you are." She pushed Nami back down into the bed, "Now, stay in bed, the treatment for the disease isn't complete yet."

"Thank you so much." Nami said, "I'll be fine as long as my fever goes down, my body will take care of itself after that."

"Nami's pretty self-reliant, so I don't doubt that." I said.

Doctorine walked back over and pushed me down again, she looked at Nami, "Well aren't you two optimistic. This disease usually takes a course of treatment 10 days long to successfully cure. Even with medicines as advanced as mine are your body will still need at least three days to fully recuperate. If you don't want to risk more suffering and possibly death, get some rest, girl." she glanced at me, "And you've been awake for three days, your body doesn't have the energy to do much. It's amazing you lasted this long!"

I turned, not quite sitting up, but enough to fully see Nami and Doctorine, "But.. we can't wait three days!"

"We can't stay that long!" Nami shot up, "We need to get Vivi home, back to Alabasta!"

I didn't quite see what happened, but I knew that Kureha had Nami pinned to the bed, "When a patient leaves this castle it's because she's either cured or deceased," She laughed, "You aren't going anywhere girl, you better get used to it."

I froze, Doctorine wasn't going to budge unless something big happened. A nearly imperceptible smile crossed my face, I just knew we would get out of here by sundown, I drifted off again thinking that.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! SOMEBODY HELP ME!" A voice broke through my sleep, I open my eyes just in time to see a tiny reindeer run through the door with a hungry Luffy and Sanji attached to him.

My eyes widened, Luffy opened his mouth to take a bite of the screaming reindeer, I jumped out of bed, "Guys! No! That reindeer is not food!"

They weren't listening, "Hold on, Luffy, Let me cook 'im first!" Sanji said.

"GUYS!" I shouted, running after the reindeer and my crew mates, "YOU CAN'T EAT CHOPPER!"

I chased them down a long hallway when Chopper made an unexpected U-turn and ran back the other way. I huffed, but still followed. When I got back into the room with Nami, Luffy had de-attached himself from Chopper and was standing at Nami's bedside.

"Nami!"

Sanji also unattached himself from Chopper and frolicked to Nami's bedside, "Nami!"

"You look like you're all better!" Luffy exclaimed.

"Getting there, thanks." She smiled, albeit half-heartedly.

Chopper was sneaking back into the room, I slid to cover him, He froze. I looked down at the tiny blue nosed reindeer and winked. He seemed to relax, but I could tell he was still wary.

"Right!" Sanji said, "One tasty venison dish for Nami coming up!"

They turned to look at me as I blocked their view of Chopper, "Leanah?" Luffy asked.

I smiled, "I managed to catch doctor Kureha between towns, I told her you guys were coming up, I got brought along." I skillfully skirted around telling them about my sleep deprivation.

Sanji smiled, wider, "Well, I guess I could make that venison work for two people."

Chopper would have gotten away clean had he not make a screeching noise at that. I froze, Luffy and Sanji inched to the side to see what was behind me, and as soon as Chopper saw them doing that he bolted. Sanji and Luffy were hot on his tail, "COOOMMEE BACK!"

I ran after them, "HE'S NOT FOOD!" After a while I managed to grab on to the edge of Luffy's shirt.

My captain was attempting to eat one of Choppers horns.

"Don't eat it yet!" Sanji chastised.

"Don't eat him _ever_!" I shouted.

Eventually they all ran faster than I could keep up with, I huffed, leaning down. I was still to tried to be at full energy. I walked back to the other room.

"-e's different it's just because he ate a human-human fruit, that's all."

"Human-human fruit... A devil fruit, right?"

I walked over and sat down on my bed. Listening intently to what I assumed was about Chopper.

"That's right." Doctorine said, "He's still a reindeer but now he has the abilities of a human, like talking and walking up right." She smiled, "And also he's a doctor, I taught Chopper everything I know about the field of medicine."

My stomach growled. I blushed slightly, "Sorry..."

The doctor smiled, "No, that's alright, I'll go get you some food."

"Thanks..."

It didn't take long for Kureha to return with food, and that food brought Sanji and Luffy in tow.

Luffy and Sanji both introduced themselves properly to Doctorine, then thanked her for the food. I was sitting at the table with Doctorine's permission.

"So Leanah," Sanji asked, "How did you get up the mountain?"

"Oh, I caught Doctorine as she was leaving Cocoa Weed, I told her that you guys were heading up the mountain and I came with her." It wasn't the whole truth, but it was good enough for me.

Luffy titled his head, mouth stuffed full of food, "Buh then why were you in bed like Nami?"

Kureha laughed, "You mean you don't know?"

I looked at her, eyes wide, silently pleading for her to not say.

"This girl here is sleep deprived. Three day straight without any sleep, it's safe to say any longer and her body would have given out."

I shrank as Luffy and Sanji stared at me. The conversation fell into silence until Luffy finished his food. It seemed that the revelation of my sleep deprivation was forgotten by the captain. He stood up, "You should be one of my crew! Please old lady, we really need to have a doctor on board!"

Doctorine, who was sitting across from Luffy, pointed at him, "Luffy.. You did tell me that's your name, right?"

"Yeah."

A dangerous look passed her face, "And did you just call me old lady?"

"Yeah, right, that's what I said, old lady."

I closed my eyes just as Kureha kicked Luffy in the face, sending him flying into the opposite wall, "If I were you I'd be more careful of what I say!" I opened my eyes, staring down at the tiny bit of food I had left. "I'm still well within my youthful 130's, thank you." She crossed her arms.

"Geeze.. you're a tough old hag." Sanji said, I ducked just in time to avoid getting hit by Kureha's kick as she sent Sanji into a wall as well.

I slowly got up, "Your kicks are about as bad as Zeff's..." I mumbled to myself.

"What was that?" She leaned forward staring at me hard.

"I said you don't look a day over 60." I smiled.

"Oh, how nice of you. But flattery will get you no where." Kureha sat back, then looked at Luffy, who was crawling towards us. "Are you boys really asking me to become a pirate? Don't be ridiculous, that would be an incredible waste of my precious time, besides I have no interest in life on the sea."

Luffy used the table to pull himself up, his face was scratched up and he had a bloody nose, I snatched a napkin and stood up myself, trying to wipe the blood off of his face. "Those are all lame excuses!" He said, "It's about adventure, old woman!"

I sighed, stepping back. Doctorine looked at me, pointing at Luffy, "Well this one's a slow learner." I shrugged, she addressed Luffy, "Didn't I just tell you to watch what you say?"

"So... these guys are pirates?" A small voice said. We all looked at where it was coming from, and saw Chopper, _Poor thing... I don't think he realized he said that out loud..._

Sanji and Luffy's jaws dropped, Chopper's jaw dropped so far it hit the floor. In a split second the chase was on again, "WAIT, FOOD! COME BACK HERE!"

I wasn't about to chase after them again, but it seemed doctor Kureha was up to the chase, she jumped out of her chair, knocking it over, "That's enough of that, idiots!"

The room was quiet of a moment before Chopper burst back in, screaming at the top of his lungs. Luffy and Sanji passed by a second later, Sanji paused for a second, He smiled, "In just a second I'll cook you two a reindeer dish you'll never forget!"

Kureha came from seemingly nowhere, "I don't think so!" She landed on the ground like a cat, armed to the teeth, "I'll eat you guys before I let that happen!" She dashed towards the captain and the cook.

They screamed in terror, "AH! SCARY HAG!"

And so Chopper was running from Luffy and Sanji who were in turn running from doctor Kureha.

They all dashed out the door, leaving it open behind them.

Nami sat up, "I don't care about food," She said. "I just want some peace and quiet."

"Agreed." I sat the chair doctor Kureha had knocked over on it's legs and sat down. A breeze came through the room, I looked at the door as snow began to line the floor.

"Snow? But that shouldn't be in the castle.." Nami said, crossing her arms for warmth. "It's freezing."

I shivered from the cold, "Yeah.." I began to get up, "I'll close the door."

"No!" Nami and I looked to see Chopper, "You both need to rest. And you still have a fever." He said, addressing Nami, then glancing around the area.

"I don't think so." Nami said, "I think it's pretty much gone now."

"I lost them..." Chopper said, "At least for now..." He ran to the door, glancing outside, "Doctorine's medicine worked quickly to reduce the fever, but the bacteria from the kestia will still remain inside your body for a little while longer." He shut the door, "So just take your antibiotics shot and stay in bed." He looked at me, "And you should be getting more sleep."

"Thank you." Nami said.

"Hm?"

"You're the one who's been taking care of us, aren't you?"

The tiny doctor glanced back at us, we smiled. "Y- You just shut up!" Chopper shouted suddenly, "I don't need thanks from you or any other low-life human!" He began doing a little happy dance, "Hehhehhehhehheh~" He changed again, "DON'T MOCK ME!" Then again, "Oh! Never mind that I'm just bein' silly, no seriously! I'm being such a fool. Hehhehheh~"

"Awww." I said to myself, "He's kind of cute."

Nami looked at me, "He's not so good at hiding his emotions."

Then Chopper inched over to Nami, "Is it true that you guys are pirates?"

"Yes."

He gently poked her hand, "Really? Real... Pirates?"

"Real Pirates."

"So you have a flag a skull on it?"

"We do," Nami smiled, "It's on our ship."

"Luffy's the Captain, Sanji's the cook, Nami's the navigator, Usopp is the sharp shooter, Zoro's the swordsman, Vivi is a guest and... I'm..." I looked at Nami, "I'm... What exactly am I on our crew?"

Nami glanced at me and shrugged, "I'm not sure we ever found that out." She looked back at Chopper, "So you're really interested in pirates, huh?"

Chopper jumped back, hitting a bookshelf, "No! Not at all, you idiot!" We blinked at this sudden change, "SHUT UP!"

Nami pushed her covers back, "All right, all right, I get it. Now calm down."

"Really, we meant no harm." I said.

"But... One more thing," Nami said, She was smiling about as wide as Luffy would've "Do you wanna come with us?"

Chopper screamed.

"You could come sail with us on the ocean."

"Yeah. We've been looking for a doctor anyway, so we'd love to have you!"

"Yep, and if we had a doctor on the ship then we wouldn't have to stay here three more days, right? I think you'd have a really good time if you came."

"You and Usopp would get along great!" I said.

"NO!" Chopper shouted, "THAT'S CRAZY! YOU REALIZE I'M A REINDEER, I DON'T BELONG ON A SHIP WITH A BUNCH OF HUMANS!" That struck a chord in me, there was hurt in his voice, a wound so deep but invisible to the eyes. "I mean... Just look at me... I'm a reindeer but I walk on two legs and I talk and everything. Animals aren't supposed to be able to do that stuff."

"Ah.. We know, but if you're trying to scare us off it isn't working." Nami said, crossing her legs.

I sighed, "We've seen much weirder."

The reindeer slumped more, looking up at us. "But I have a blue nose.." He said it almost as if that was the deciding factor, that his nose prevented him from doing anything.

The room got dangerously quiet. Until the moment was ruined by the sudden appearance of our captain and chef. "THERE YOU ARE, MEAT! COME HERE, YOU!"

Chopper bolted out of the room faster than the speed of light, once again screaming at the top of his lungs with Luffy and Sanji on his tail.

We blinked, they really were set on eating Chopper. Kureha walked in calmly after them, she sat down, "Those brats sure can run, can't they?"

Nami slid back under the covers. I shook my head, "One of their many talents, I suppose."

Kureha sighed, "I don't much like what you were doing there girls." Nami and I looked at her, "Trying to tempt my reindeer away from me without my permission."

"I think he genuinely wants to go out to sea." I received a glare for my two cents.

Nami half chuckled, "What, we need your permission to make a move on a man all of a sudden?"

Kureha laughed at that, "No, I suppose you don't, if you wanna take him away from here, go ahead. But I must warn you, it won't be as easy as you think." The air suddenly felt heavy, "Chopper has a scar on his heart. A deep one my medicine can't cure... From the moment he was born, everyone, including his parents turned their backs on him. All because he was born with a blue nose."

I looked down at my hands, folding them and unfolding them in my lap, "So that's why he spoke with such a hurt tone..." I slowly stood up and moved back to the other bed.

"He was forced to walk at the back of the group separated from the rest of the reindeer, even though he was just a helpless newborn. Then one day he ate a devil fruit, and be became even more of an outcast than he was before." She paused, even if she seemed unattached to what she was saying, you could tell in some part that it hurt her deeply to explain what happened to Chopper. "The other reindeer pressured him to leave the herd. His blue nose already made him different... But now he wasn't like the ordinary reindeer at all."

I slipped under the covers of the bed, now slightly understanding why Chopper was so reactive earlier. My heart shattered, and I fell asleep again, listening to Kureha tell Chopper's sad tale.

_We'd accept him..._ I thought, just before drifting off into another dream filled sleep.

**Author's Note:**

Sorry for the delay. I've been crazed, what with the end of school coming up.

Who are the mysterious people? Well, I can tell you what they aren't: Figment's of Leanah's imagination, neither is Leahon.

And ahmergerd this chapter is _long_! I didn't even realize how long it was until I loaded it in! Gosh.

Your ever willing author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	37. The Beginning of the Fight

I dreamed about a younger Chopper running from angry villagers and a strange man running beside him, I was about 16 and seemed to be viewing these things with my own eyes, curled up on a couch, there was... something cold in my hands and I seemed to be eating it. I had a feeling... I was waiting for someone.

I took a bite of what was in my hands, staring intently at the picture on the screen as Chopper and this man, doctor Hiriluk, seemed to repeat the pattern elsewhere, I laughed, it was quite funny really, but there was something about the whole situation that seemed to bother me. I shifted setting down what I could now identify as a bowl, and stood up, walking over to the tv and stopping the show on the screen. I pulled a disk from the dvd player and placed it in a box.

I shut that box and picked up another one, and stopped. I looked over across what seemed to be a large kitchen at a plain wooden door, then at a clock. "He's late..." I said softly, "_She's_ late... they're both late..." I got a feeling in the pit of my stomach that this was a normal occurrence. It wasn't right, but at least I could take care of myself. I set down the box and went back to the couch. I glanced at the clock again, and bit my thumbnail.

A door creaked open somewhere behind me, I didn't turn to look, my eyes were glued to that door. I only glanced away when a tall blond haired man slinked into my peripheral vision. He just walked right passed me and into the kitchen. I stared between the man and the door.

He looked around the kitchen, "You didn't cook anything?" He sounded disappointed, the man was some relation of my mother, I was staying with him while my parents were away. He turned to me, a frown on his face.

I stared at him. He stared back. I glanced at the clock.

Something dawned on him, and he laughed his incredibly creepy laugh, well, creepy isn't quite the word, just... odd I guess. "Heh heh heh heh!"

I shifted slightly, there was obviously something I wasn't getting. "Hm?"

After he was done with his laughing fit he smiled, "I forgot to tell you, Riza called. She said that the meeting is running long so she and your fath-"

"_Step_-father." I corrected.

He smiled wider, "Right, forgot that John's not Shawn." He leaned against one of the counter top. "The way Riza treats him, he might as well be."

"He's not dad." I grabbed the now bowl of ice cream soup off the floor. "What did mom call about?"

"Anyway the meeting is running long, she's not going to be picking you up for another few hours."

I sighed, "Give me a moment and I'll have something made."

He moved out of the kitchen, "You spoil me."

"Go back into your cave," I said, referring to his room, "To much exposure to the outside world might make you break out in_ hives_." He only ever came out around dinner time. He didn't even come out when I arrived.

He turned and laughed, waving a hand, "Knock twice when dinner's ready."

"Knock twice when dinner is ready." I mocked him, "Heh heh heh heh! I forgot to tell you, Riza called." I started work on dinner.

"Your impression needs work!" He shouted before I heard the door shut.

I stuck my tongue out at his door. Then things went fuzzy.

My nose twitched. I could smell the smoke on someone's clothes. I rolled over in the bed, "Go away, Benn..." I moaned, pulling the pillow over my head, "Tell Shanks I've got a hangover or something."

"Hm?" A confused voice that definitely did not belong to the first mate of the Red Hair Pirates said, "I don't know who you're talking about, Leanah dear."

I removed the pillow and looked at Sanji, "Sorry... Thought you were someone else for a second... all this dreaming is getting me confused."

He held up a cup to me, "Here, I made you this green tea, it should help you relax, maybe even quiet those dreams you've been having."

I sat up and took the very _hot_ cup from the chef, quickly switching to holding the rim so I didn't burn my fingers, "Thank you, Sanji, you really didn't have to."

The chef blushed and smiled, "Oh, it's no problem for a beautiful woman such as yourself."

"Hey, you." Doctorine said from the door, "I don't recall you ask permission to use _my_ kitchen."

Sanji looked back at her, "Madam," I winced, this wasn't going to end well for him, "I made a dish for you as well, it's supposed to make you look years ye-AAHH!" In a flash she kicked Sanji and he flew into a wall.

"I'm not a madam." She said, walking over and standing between my bed and Nami's, "I'm a swingin' single still in the prime of youth. Don't forget it."

Nami smiled, "Not a day over 139, right?"

"DOCTORINE!" Chopper shouted from the hallway, "SAVE ME FROM THIS LUNITIC!" He ran into the room with Luffy hot on his tail.

"Wait! Hold on!" It didn't seem like Luffy wanted to eat him this time, but actually had something other than food on his mind.

Chopper jumped through a door, leaving a Chopper-shaped hole in it. Luffy just hit the door and fell over. Soon Chopper ran back out, hiding behind one of Doctorine's legs as Luffy followed.

"Wait.." Nami said, staring at our captain, "What are you doing, Luffy?"

Luffy had Chopper cornered, "This guy's gonna join us and be our friend!" Chopper dashed to the left, Luffy still followed.

"Doesn't seem like he wants too..." I mused, sipping the tea I had received.

"Really!?" Nami said, "Great!"

Once again Chopper took refuge behind Doctorine's legs, "I didn't say I'd do that!"

Luffy leaned in front of Chopper, "Sure you did!"

I blew on the tea, "So Luffy just heard what he wanted..."

"No I didn't!"

"Did!"

"Didn't!" They ran circles around a now very annoyed looking Kureha, "Be quiet, both of you!" They stopped bickering, but Luffy was still chasing the reindeer, eventually they left the room again. "Friend, huh?" Kureha mused, "If only he knew... what friend means to someone who's been through what Chopper has..." She sighed, "Poor guy."

We all watched the doctor, a silent, unasked question hung in the air. _What's the story? What doesn't he know?_

Kureha glanced back at us, then back out the door, "When he was out there, on his own, there was only one human that he ever really opened up too. That man's name, was doctor Hiriluk."

_Didn't I just have a dream about a doctor Hiriluk?_ I thought.

"He was a crazy quack, but he named Chopper, and called him his son."

I didn't want to rush my tea, but the story that was going to by told next almost made me want to.

Doctor Kureha told a tale that could be considered even more heart breaking than the first, a tale of a reindeer human who had turned his back on everything, and a doctor who wished for nothing more than to heal the sick and injured.

Sanji had gone to get me more tea, I sat in silence, thinking again.

"_Hey! If you keep that look on your face, I'll be forced to make you smile!"_

I looked up, expecting to see Shanks with a beer glass in his hand, but he wasn't there. _Hm... I love traveling with Luffy and his group, I have a place here, even if I don't quite know what it is yet, but I just know I do._ I stared at my empty cup, _But... Shanks and his crew... I guess I felt at home with them too. Gah! I'm thinking to much!_ I shook my head, _What I need right now is a nice glass of wine._

And as soon as I thought that, Sanji walked over and refilled my tea. I sighed, it wasn't what I was hoping for, but it would have to do. I sipped the tea, not caring about how hot it was.

Nami looked at Kureha, "So... What happened next? Between Chopper and doctor Hiriluk?"

Doctor Kureha smiled, it was small, and yet very respectful. She continued the story of Hiriluk and Chopper.

Tony Tony Chopper, a new name given to the reindeer by someone he just met, and was slowly learning to understand. I could understand that. I could understand that perfectly. I sipped my tea, _Yeah. I know just how you feel on that front, Chopper._ I thought, _Or... I imagine I do..._ I shifted, wanting to listen more intently to the story.

"The good times passed in the twinkling of an eye. And then..." Something changed in her voice, it got heavier, she leaned forward grabbing her bottle of- what I could now tell was- plum sake, she took a long drink. When she was done drinking the moment still hung in the air, "It finally came time to saw farewell. As it always does in the end."

I could picture it perfectly.

A healed Chopper, having spent so long in the company of this man he came to love and trust, only to be chased off. A tearful parting, one that must have hurt both Chopper and Hiriluk, a true attachment cannot be made one way, every attachment goes both ways.

She stood up and move to make a fire. "Of course... The quack thought he was doing the right thing. He didn't want Chopper to worry. After all, the idiot wasn't healed, he was still dying." She stoked the flames, staring into them with a look I couldn't place. She stabbed at the fire, "However... the story of these two outcasts doesn't have a happy ending." Doctorine stood up again, walked over to her chair and sat down. "When he found out Hiriluk only had ten days to live, Chopper got very upset, as you might imagine. It was only natural, but then he decided to take action the only way he knew how."

"He tried to find a cure..." I guessed.

The doctor nodded, "He tried to find some damn cure-all myth." Kureha frowned, "What he did get was the Amiudaki. a mushroom that kills you less than 12 hours after you eat it. And the idiot ate it away..." She sighed, "He ultimately went to this castle after the king at the time set a trap for any doctors left, and blew himself up there, making this his grave. It's been six years since then."

"So for the six years since then, Chopper's been studying medicine under you." Nami was looking down processing the tale that was just told.

"Yeah... I taught him everything I know." Doctorine had completely changed from when she strated telling the tale to the end. Even after six years, it still hurt. "He's been a good student."

"Doctorine!" Chopper called from the halls, "Doctorine!" He was panicked, something big must've happened that wasn't Luffy. He burst open the door, he looked more like a reindeer now as opposed to the other form I had seen him in, "Doctorine, there's trouble, he's here!" He looked up, "Wapol is back!"

I stared at Chopper, "Wa..pol?"

Doctorine just smiled, "Is he?" She stood up, "Well, it seems I have some more guest to attend to. You all stay here." She walked out of the room, "Chopper, follow me!"

I pursed my lips, "To heck with that!" I stood up and grabbed my coat, pulling it on. "I'm going out there."

Sanji pulled out a cigarette and lit it, "I'll go too."

I checked under the bed, and around it, then the cabinet on the other side of the room. "What are you looking for?" Nami asked.

"My swords..." I said, still picking though the cabinet, "I can't find them..."

"Here," Sanji held out a rapier, "Use this."

I stared at it, then him, "You really know nothing about swords, do you?"

The chef shrugged, tossing it back in a small pile of weaponry. I walked over and picked through that, I didn't find Ami or Ana, but I did find a different katana, I supposed it was good enough and walked out the door with Sanji following.

We ran to the gates, and saw that it was in fact Wapol, and those two guys who shouted at us from the ship.

"Hm?" Sanji slumped, "Not these guys again..."

Luffy, who was coatless, was staring at the ground, "Last time I ran in to you guys I couldn't fight because I had to protect my friends. but now..." He looked up, "Ooooohhh you guys are so gonna get it!" He laughed.

I assume Luffy had already thrown the first punch, seeing as Wapol was on the ground and his two.. attendants, I guess, were kneeling by his sides. "How dare you!" The deeper voice one shouted, "Do you know who you just attacked? This is no lowly commoner! This is Wapol, the king and absolute ruler of Drum Kingdom!"

"That's right!" The high voiced one said, "Show some respect! He's this country's monarch, how dare you do something like that to his most excellent of Excellencies? For shame!"

"The country he was king of died!" I shouted back, I was about to say something more, but Luffy cut me off.

"Who cares!?" He stretched his cheeks out, "He ticked me off again!" I could imagine that he was sticking his tongue out at them.

"So I take it you've run afoul of Wapol before, Young man." Doctorine said.

Luffy let go of his cheeks and turned to her, "I sure have! He's that annoying big mouth pirate!"

"What did he do?" She asked.

Luffy stomped, "He ate part of our ship! And then he attacked me and my friends! This guy's got it coming, and I'm going to give it to him."

"OK," Sanji started, "But before you do that..."

"Aren't you a little _chilly_ without a _coat_?" I finished, stressing some words to hopefully help it sink in.

"You know... _cold_?" Sanji ventured.

It seemed to sink in, Luffy turned back to Wapol, "Hey! Did he say he was a king?! But I thought he was a pirate!"

I facepalmed, "Idiot..."

"Took you long enough!" Sanji yelled.

"Ha," The deeper voiced one said, "So you're disrespectful _and_ have wax in your ears. But yeah, Wapol is the king of Drum Kingdom, when you met him before he was temporarily a pirate for his own reasons. But no longer."

"That's right." Now that I was actually paying attention to them, the higher voiced one, who was now talking, looked sort of like and odd jester. "King Wapol's pirate days are behind him, and so he's returned to claim both his castle and his country." The other guy looked sort of like a boxer if a boxers gloves and helmet were made of hair.

"Wah! It's freezing out here!" Luffy said, crossing his arms for warmth as he shivered.

"You really are an idiot!" Sanji said, looking like he was ready to hit Luffy.

"Honestly, Luffy..."

"Yeah, It's 50 below zero!" Chopper stared at our captain.

I shook my head, "Go get a coat, Luffy, I won't have you almost getting frostbite again."

He was already gone.

Wapol finally got to his feet, "Straw-hat, you've got some nerve! Just wait. I'm going to bite you into pieces!"

We all looked back at Wapol and his group, Sanji raised a hand, "Uh, sorry, but you'll have to hang on for just a minute, he had to go get a coat." It was perfectly polite and respectful on Sanji's part, Wapol didn't take it that way.

"IS THIS A JOKE?!"

"Tell me," Chopper said suddenly.

"Eh?" I looked at the reindeer.

"Your friend... he can stretch himself... How?"

Sanji briefly glanced up, "Oh, that. It's because he's a rubber man."

Chopper was shocked, "What the heck is that?"

Sanji and I glanced at each other, then smiled, looking back at Chopper, and simultaneously said, "It's a monster."

Chopper blinked at us as Wapol seemed to get a grip on the situation. Sort of. He put on an over confident smirk, "Well, Well, it looks like we're up against that old hag, a reindeer and a few of the Straw Hats. Not that much of a challenge. This should be over quickly, and once we've eliminated them there won't be anyone foolhardy enough to defy me!"

"Of course, sir." The jester one said, "Today will be remembered as the day you return Drum kingsom to it's former glory."

Wapol looked at our small group. "I'll start with you, doctor Kureha. You've committed a major offense by moving into my castle, and even a grater one by flying that strange flag." I looked up, straining my neck to see a jolly roger flying where a kingdom flag might. I chuckled.

"It's not yours!" She shouted, "Not anymore, it's Hiriluk's grave." There it was, the reason a woman like her would stay in a large place like this. "I had no interest in this run down place, what with all the bad things you did here, but we could use it to do some good, and the reindeer insisted on flying the doctor's flag."

"Besides, you can't bring back something that died!" I shouted, "Drum Kingdom died the day you abandoned it when Blackbeard and his crew attacked!"

Wapol ignored me entirely and laughed, "Ah! I had almost forgotten that fool!" I tensed, now he had certainly gone to far. The "king's" facial expression changed, "How dare you desecrate my castle by flying the flag of that stupid doctor!"

"Stupid!?" I screeched, shifting into a fighting stance, "Why I outta-!" Sanji grabbed my shoulder. I calmed down.

"I command it be burned immediately!" The "king" shouted.

Chopper stared down at the snow, then he began to grow. "I'll never let you touch that flag, or get inside this castle..." The reindeer was steadily changing form. "Never!" He was now a whole lot taller than I was. Another form.

Now I knew what Chopper could do, the human-human fruit was a Zoan-type, The form he was in while he was pulling the sleigh must have been his reindeer form, the form he'd been walking around in all this time must be his hybrid form and the the form I was seeing then was his human form. I have to admit, it was pretty cool.

"Look sir," The jester said, "It's that-"

"You're right!" The other one interrupted, "It is him, it's that doctor's monster. The one Dalton stopped."

"That flag there," Chopper continued, "It's a symbol of his faith. I won't let you take it down! Not now, not ever!" Anyone could tell he was dead serious.

Wapol laughed, "We're going to take it and all of you down! _And_ we're going into the castle. Show them no mercy boys!"

His two attendants stepped forward.

Sanji took a drag from his cigarette, then addressed Kureha."Old la-"

I gently elbowed Sanji, "Doctor-"

He rubbed his side, "You gonna fight too?"

She smiled, "If their more than you kids can handle, I'll step in." She laughed, "But the girl's still in no condition to fight."

I stared at her, "I'm just fine!" I gripped the borrowed sword, it didn't feel quite as familiar as Ami, but it would have to make do. Sanji and I stepped up beside Chopper.

The boxer one began speaking, "Don't worry, sir, we'll get them out of your hair. An' speakin' of hair!" He threw something in our direction.

It was headed straight for Doctor Kureha, "Doctorine!" Chopper shouted as the black projectile got closer.

Sanji stopped it with his leg at what could have been the last second. He looked at Wapol and his crew, "Hey big man with the Afro. Didn't your mother ever tell you it's not right to strike a lady? Especially not a hot young one?"

She laughed, "Now that's more like it, blondie."

I drew the sword. Readying to attack. Something wasn't right about this.

The attendant smiled, "What's that?"

"Huh?" Sanji stared at what you could now see was a giant ball of hair on his leg, he swung his leg, trying to get it off. "Damn! Why won't this stupid thing come off? What's making it stick to me!? Static electricity or something?!"

"Exactimundo!" The man said as he laughed.

Sanji continued to freak out. I sighed.

The attendant threw two more at Sanji, he tried desperately to get them off. "Reindeer, help!"

Chopper ran over, "I'm coming!"

"Get these things off of me!"

I walked over as Sanji and Chopper began trading the hair balls back and forth.

"Boys, stop!"

"Will you two stop messing around?"

Sanji froze for a second and I swiped my sword over one, it clung to the blade. "Ok... Not what I was expecting..."

"Ha!" The boxer guy smiled, "There's a reason I don't keep my hair conditioned."

"And it's a good one too," The jester raised his bow, readying an arrow, "Their dryness makes them burst into flames much easier." The head of the arrow caught on fire.

"How is that-?"

"Oh no!" Sanji said, "He's gonna burn these things!"

Chopper passed off the last one to Sanji, I still had on on my blade. "Here!" He said before running off.

Sanji got mad, "Hey wait, what are you doing!?"

I stared at my blade, a plan forming in my head.

"Decoy plan!" The reindeer shouted.

"Decoy plan?" Sanji stared at Chopper as he ran away, "Wait!? We're the decoys!?"

_Abandoning plan time!_ I brushed the hair off on Sanji, "Sorry, _you're_ the decoy!" I ran.

Sanji didn't have time to say anything before the jester fired the flaming arrow at him, catching one of the hair balls on fire. Sanji yelped and stood on one hand, using the other to scoop snow on to the burning area.

I felt more than a little bad that I had just sort of made him the decoy, but it felt right, in a very odd way.

The decoy plan Chopper had seemed to work fairly well, While they were all distracted by Sanji trying to stop the fire on his leg he ran from the side, airing to punch one of the three of them. It would have worked. If the attendant hadn't dodged and Wapol hadn't pushed him out of the way.

"Move!" The "king" shouted, opening his mouth wide and biting down on Chopper.

"Chopper!" I shouted, running towards them, "No you don't, you bastard!" I screamed, turning the sword in my hand, It was interesting not having Ana in my other hand, but it also felt oddly natural to only have one blade.

I noticed Chopper shrink back to his small form as opposed to stay in the large one. The two attendants got in my path, I twirled to avoid them, tripped over my own feet, and landed face first in the snow.

My coordination was still shot. But I served as a marvelous distraction so Sanji could shoot Luffy at Wapol and free Chopper.

I got up and brushed the snow off of me, then picked up the sword and sheathed it as I walked back to the castle.

"Not to shabby." Sanji said.

"Eh..." I chuckled, smiling at Sanji, "I guess we were both decoys in the end."

The chef nodded. Chopper looked at the three of us, "Uh. Thanks you guys. You were so amazing."

I looked at Luffy, "Yeah, I must admit that wa-"

"Hey!" Sanji shouted, pointing at Luffy's coat, "Wait just a minute! Isn't that Nami's coat you're wearing?"

The captain nodded, "Woah, look. Big-mouth guy is still alive! But his hippo is headed to the moon."

I turned around just in time to see something fly far out of sight, I prayed for the poor thing.

"TAKE IT OFF RIGHT NOW, JERK!" Sanji shouted.

I turned back and pried Sanji off of Luffy, "I'm sure he got Nami's permission before he took it, so just calm down, will ya?"

"But it's Nami's coat!"

I sighed, then rubbed my arms, "Burr, I'm a little chilly, even in my coat."

Sanji turned to me with hearts in his eyes, "Is there anything I can do to make you warmer?" he asked.

"Oh, I seem to have warmed up already."

Sanji seemed dejected until suddenly...

"-MY BIGGER APITITE!"

We all looked over at Wapol, "The hell? There's no possible way..."

But, it was apparently, as Wapol was standing up.

"Whoa... He got up." Luffy said in awe.

"Yeah, but how? You hit him pretty hard!" Sanji said.

"Guess he's tough?"

"My guess is that tin he's wearing... and probably all that fat, too." I crossed my arms.

"Chess, give me a list of what I ate today, and in the exact order than I ate it."

The jester pulled out a note book, _Oh... so that's his name..._ He took out a small book. "Well sir, you started by eating two cannons on the ship, one sauteed in butter and the other raw." My eye twitched, _this guy eats __**cannons?**_ "Then it was a cannon ball and gun powder salad followed by the main course of a toasted cottage." He bowed.

"And you thought I ate a lot..." Luffy sweat dropped.

"You do." I said.

"But this guy's a bigger pig than you." Sanji chipped in.

Wapol glared at us. "You see straw hats, what ever I eat becomes a part of my body because of the Munch-Munch Fruit." He laughed evilly.

Chopper tensed up. "What's happening?"

Wapol began shifting. A chimney sprouted from his head.

"What the-?"

"You've got to be kidding me!"

"Munch-munch shop!" Wapol shouted as his arms morphed into cannons and his body turned into a house. "The Wapol house!"

"A house!?"

"Oh my god!"

"AWWWESOOOOOOOOOOOMEEEEEEE!"

The "king" looked at Chess and the other attendant, "Now, if you'll excuse me," He said, most likely addressing us, "I have to eat!" He loomed over his attendants, "Behold! The power of the Munch-Munch Factory!"

He picked the two men up _and shoved them into his mouth!_

I was utterly disgusted by the scene playing out in front of me. "How crewel!"

"He's eating his own men!"

"That's so Meeeaaannn!"

After he was done... chewing them, steam billowed out of the cannons and the chimney from his head. He.. danced? Stepped? I don't know, moved from side to side. He stopped, and more steam billowed out.

"He's... stopped."

"But for how long? And why?" I asked.

"Feast your eyes on this! Come forth you miraculous union!" He smiled as the door from the house that replaced his stomach began to open slowly.

"Uh..." I was at a loss for words.

"What kind of union?!"

"Allow me to introduce myself." I winced at this new "voice". It sounded like Chess and the other guy were just talking in unison, and their voices didn't really enhance each other either. "Behold the strongest warrior in all of Drum Kingdom!"

When they stepped out... I couldn't believe it. They had just merged into one being, but... to me it looked more like someone had taken them apart with a seam ripper, and then asked a high school sewing student with ADD to put them back together. "Errr..."

"Chessmarimo, ha!" The "miraculous" union shouted.

"Miraculous union?" Sanji frowned.

"More like 'hideous union'." I said curtly.

"SWWWWEEEEEEETTT!" Luffy shouted.

Sanji got in Luffy's face, "It's ridiculous!"

"Just don't let your guard down." Doctorine warned.

Sanji and I looked over at her. "Hm?"

"They might look silly, but don't be fooled. They're tough. So tough the citizens couldn't stand against them." She paused, "That's how these guys were able to exile all the doctors."

_Nothing can ever be easy can it?_ I sighed internally. A tense moment hung in the air, or... it would have been tense if Luffy could've shut his mouth.

"Article one of the Drum Kingdom Constitution: Those who don't follow the kings wishes will be put to death! That's the top law of this country, you refused my wishes and broke that law."

"How many times do we have to say it! This isn't-" I started shouting.

Wapol interrupted me, "Now you are all going to be punished for your crimes!" There was no reasoning with this guy. "But first I'm going to deal with that quack's flag soiling my regal castle! It's time I take that thing down!" Wapol raised a cannon arm and fired at the flag.

I followed the cannon ball, "No!"

The cannon ball crashed into the tower roof, and the smoke cleared just enough for us to see the flag begin to fall.

"Hey... a pirate flag..." Luffy said slowly. "Hey reindeer... That flag.."

Chopper didn't answer, he just stared up at the falling flag, a look of horror in his eyes. That is until he turned and ran full dash at Wapol and Chessmarimo.

"HOW DARE YOU?! YOU ATTACKED DOCTOR'S FLAG, YOU JERK!" The tiny reindeer was approaching them fast, Chessmarimo slid to stand in front of Wapol and block Chopper's path. But Chopper shifted into a fully grown human size.

Using the forward momentum he had gathered, and the sudden growth spurt, Chopper launched himself over Chessmarimo and latched on to Wapol. "Doctor tried to-! Doctor tired to-! He tried to save even you!" The reindeer pulled a fist back, ready to punch Wapol, but, he stopped. A moment passed, then two. "I-" Chopper started. "I won't hurt you if you just... leave this country forever!"

Doctorine was shocked, "Chopper, what are you doing?! Even if he does promise that, you can't trust a word that man says!"

Chopper was shaking now, he turned slowly, "But... Doctor said..." Faster than a blinked Wapol had a cannon arm pointed right at Chopper and fired.

"CHOPPER!"

I turned, "Luffy! We gotta- Luffy?" Luffy wasn't there anymore.

"Hey! Big-mouth!" Luffy shouted from the top of the castle. I turned, he had torn a sleeve off of his coat and used it to tie the flag back in place. I smiled, Luffy hadn't heard the story behind Chopper and that flag, then again, I really only heard half of it, but... He was protecting it anyway.

"Straw hat!"

"You guys weren't real pirates! You were just fake ones! That's why you don't understand what flying a pirate flag means. 'Cause you're just a bunch of fakes who didn't risk your lives!"

I glanced at Sanji, who was merely trying to keep his cigarette burning in this cold, a thoughtful expression on his face. I assumed these kind of battle field speeches were a normality for Luffy.

"A pirate flag's meaning!?" Wapol shouted, "BWAHAHAHA! Don't make me laugh! Flags have no meaning!"

_Flags have no meaning?_ I chuckled softly at the thought. _Then what did the Drum Kingdom flag mean?_

"If you think that..." Luffy shouted in reply, "Then you're dumber than you look!"

"What?!"

"Listen!" Luffy shouted, "Pirate flags stand for something, Big-mouth! They're not raised as some kind of _joke!_" This was obviously a topic Luffy cared a lot about.

"The only joke here is that I've let you live as long as you have!" Wapol retorted, "Since you dare put that flag back, after I knocked it down, it's time I deliver the punch line!" The former tyrant raised an arm, and aimed at Luffy. He fired.

Chopper practically jumped up when he realized what was happening. "Hey you, look out!" He shouted to Luffy.

"Do your worst. You'll never break this flag."

_3... 2... 1.. impact._ I winced when the cannon ball hit the roof.

"LUFFY!" Sanji shouted.

"Was he hit?" Doctorine asked.

"Why are you worried?" I asked, gaining an odd stare from Doctorine. "This is _Luffy_ we're talking about."

Sanji relaxed a bit, "Good point."

Wapol laughed in his "victory". The smoke cleared, and there, on top of the castle, was a _very_ pissed off Luffy.

"I **told** you. You can't break it!"

Wapol stopped laughing. "What?" Chessmarimo asked in confusion, "How did he do that? It's Impossible!"

"I have no idea who this pirate flag originally belonged to." Luffy said, "But it doesn't matter, a pirate flag is someone's pledge to risk their life! It's not something to laugh at." There was a moment of stunned silence. "It stands for something that you stupid jackasses will never understand, not in a million years!"

I smiled, _That ought'a floor those bastards._

"You won't break it." Luffy repeated, "Because the skull on it is a symbol of _faith_!"

I almost wanted to clap, but the tension in the air was enough to know not to. _This is going to be an interesting battle._

**Author's note:**

Huzzah! Back story!  
>So I've revealed the weird relative and her parents names.<br>_And_ the battle on the drum Rockies is starting. I consider this a pretty good chapter

Edit: Rescinding the link that used to be here, under the author fear of revealing to much to soon.

Your ever willing author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	38. The Fall of a Nation

The moment was broken by Luffy, "Hey reindeer!"

"Huh?"

"I'm gonna beat these guys up for showing you friend's flag disrespect, you in?"

Chopper was still a little stunned by the heart-felt speech Luffy had given. He said something, but I couldn't hear what.

"You idiot!" Wapol shouted, "All right then, since you feel so strongly about that flag, I'll destroy you along with that piece of trash!" He, again, aimed his cannon arm right at Luffy.

That's when Sanji shifted in to action, "I don't think so, tubby." He shifted all his weight to one side, then pushed of, gaining speed quickly.

I frowned, there was something... _"The boy with no coat and the man with the spinal injury."_ _Spinal injury...?_ My mind raced, _ Spinal injury._ Then it hit me. _Spinal injury!_ I ran after him, managing to loop my arms around his, bringing him to a sudden stop.

"Wha-?" He glanced back, "Leanah! What are you doing?"

"Sanji, you hurt your back on the way up, remember?" I kept my voice low, trying to emphasize the seriousness, "If you go any farther your back might give out, making you _useless_."

Sanji bristled up, but then quickly relaxed again, conceding a defeat that only cost him a little pride.

"Thank you..." I whispered, genuinely relieved I'd stopped him before he hurt himself.

He whirled around, "No promblem, Leanah de-" There was a painful sounding crack as Sanji expression changed for love to extreme pain. He crumbled to the ground.

"There goes his back bone..." Doctorine remarked.

I sighed, "You idiot..."

Wapol laughed, "You keep blathering at each other as much as you want, but I'm taking that flag down! Straw Hat, Say your prayers!"

Chopper turned, "STOP IT!" He ran at Wapol as I tried to get Sanji to his feet.

"Go get him, reindeer guy!"

Chopper pulled back his arm, readying to punch Wapol square in the face. "Wapol, sir! Look out!" Chassmarimo blocked the punch using all four hands.

"Hehehe! Would ya look at that!" Doctorine said, "The little fur ball's got more courage than a full grown man."

"It looks that way." I dragged Sanji back to the castle entrance.

Chopper jumped back from Chessmarimo, They laughed, "Wahaha! I'm sorry freak, but there's no way I'm going to let you lay a single paw on our king." Chopper stiffened, then changed forms again, back to his half form. "Wow, there really are some strange creatures in this world. You must be that yeti the villagers were terrified of. They hated you,. And even tried to kill you. You're a monster with no friends." Chessmarimo pointed at Chopper, "No body likes you, they all want you dead, and yet here you are trying to save this country! That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard!"

"Shut up!" Chopper shouted, "Even though I don't have any friends, I can still fight for something I believe in! And as long as the flag flies, I will!"

"Hey!" Luffy and I shouted in unison, "That's not true!"

Chopper turned to us, and I looked up at Luffy. I couldn't see him, but I assumed he was coming down.

"You do have friends, reindeer! I'm your friend! ME!" And then I saw him, rocketing towards the ground, he was going to make impact, and it was going to be big.

I followed his trajectory and he landed in the snow, right in front of Wapol and Chessmarimo, knocking both of them off their feet. "Oh no! Straw Hat!" Chopper shouted.

The snow cloud cleared, and Luffy just laughed.

"You should be flat as a pancake!"

He laughed some more, "Yeah... But I'm fine, because I'm a rubber man!"

"Rubber!?"

Chessmarimo sat up, prompting Luffy to point over to him, "Hey reindeer, can you finish off that two headed guy for me?"

"That one over there?" Chopper asked, staring at them, "Piece of cake."

"Good. While you're doing that, I'll take care of fatso here." Luffy stood up.

"Captain!" I called, still holding Sanji up, "What do you want me to do?"

Luffy just barely turned to me, "Make sure Sanji's okay, and watch our backs, make sure they don't cheat."

I nodded, "That I can do."

Wapol got to his feet clearly angry at Luffy, "You dare knock this country's monarch over?" Luffy stuck his tongue out.

Meanwhile Chopper was staring down Chessmarimo, "I'm takin' you down!"

"Oh yeah?" Chessmarimo sneered, "You an what army? You little freak!"

Sanji managed a tiny laugh as he pushed off of me, "Freak? that's the pot calling the kettle black."

I tightened my grip, "Sanji, your back will only get worse if you continue trying to move!"

"The girl's right, you may end up losing your ability to walk. And don't worry, when push comes to shove, my little reindeer can hold his own."

"Listen up!" Chopper shouted, "My name's Tony Tony Chopper, not freak! It's a name the world's greatest doctor gave me!" I could see he was getting worked up. "Even if he forgave you for disrespecting his flag... I WON'T FORGIVE YOU!"

A moment passed through the air.

Chessmarimo straightened, "No, the only one who will show no forgiveness is me, I'll stomp you."

Chopper reached into his back pocket and pulled something out, holding it between his hooves. "Rumble ball."

"Huh?" Chessmarimo asked. "What's that?"

"The effect of the rumble ball lasts three minutes." Chopper explained, "That's all the time I need to take you down."

"Three minutes?! Haha, you couldn't defeat me in three years let alone three minutes!"

"Just three?" I whispered, smiling to myself while still keeping Sanji restrained. "I'll bet he can do it in two and a half."

"Well, alright." Doctorine said, almost as if taking my bet, "This is looking like an interesting battle."

"Come on, Leanah. Let me get in there and help a little." Sanji complained.

"Shoosh!" I said, watching Chopper closely as he tossed the small yellow ball into the air and ate it.

"Rumble!"

A part of me gushed, _Awwww! He's got his own little catchphrase for when he uses it! Too cute!_

"You're no match." Chessmarimo said, pulling out two bows, already loaded with flaming arrows, "Not against this... _Marimo snow-melting arrow!_" He fired the arrows.

Chopper switched forms to his reindeer form and dodged them both.

"Just a transformation, eh? I was expecting something more, but all you have to show are Devil Fruit powers?" Chessmarimo couldn't seem to see it, but I knew there was something bigger going on. "You're a Zoan-type, just like Dalton," I frowned, _Dalton was a Zoan-type?_ "So.. you're a reindeer human, huh?"

"No!" Chopper shouted as he changed forms again, "I'm a human reindeer!"

"Whatever!" Chessmarimo said, "You're still a Zoan-type and I know all about the three form transformations you zoan-types use!" he pulled out four hammers "_Marimo's big super surprise big quatro hammah!_ And speaking of surprises, you've got none left to spring on me! I've seen all your forms now, you're nothing but a power fighter like Dalton, so there's no way you can-"

"-Jumping point, jump boost!" Chopper shouted just as Chessmarimo brought on of the hammers down.

"-get the jump on me!" the hammer smashed into the ground as Chopper launched into the air.

"Whoo-ee..." I whistled watching Chopper continue to go higher.

"Jeeze, that guy can really jump..." Sanji said.

"What the-? I don't get it! What's that form? Wasn't his human-animal form the little reindeer from earlier?!" He was struggling to keep an eye on Chopper while also trying to work out what the hell was going on, "What's going on now!"

"Guard point, fur boost!" Chopper changed again, just in time to be smacked by one of the hammers, but... He was a giant ball of fur.

"Another form?!"

"Whoa! Awesome!"

Chopper's legs emerged from the fur ball, and then it shook and Chopper's head emerged.

"No way! I hit you dead on!"

"It won't work!" Chopper shouted.

"I don't understand! You Zoan types are limited to a three form transformation! What are you?!"

I found Chessmarimo's distress quite funny despite probably how I would feel in the same situation. It was also hard to take Chopper seriously while he looked like a giant fur ball.

"The rumble ball is a special pill that enhances the power of the devil fruit's transformation. Over five long years of research, I discovered four additional transformation points! Do the rest fo the math yourself!"

_Eight... wait.. no... Three... plus four... seven?_ I frowned, attempting to bite my lip in thought, but only being met with that horrid bitter lip stuff. _Why am I thinking that he has eight transformations then?_

"A- A seven form transformation!? That's impossible, I don't believe it!"

"Well then what are the two other forms apart from the already established three?" I said under my breath.

Luffy looked frozen in shock, I sighed as he went giddy with excitement, "A talking reindeer who can change into seven different forms!" He eventually dropped to his knees, laughing like a mad man.

"Your friend..." Doctorine started, "What's wrong with him?"

"My guess..." I shifted, trying to keep Sanji upright, "He can't handle Chopper being a Talking transforming reindeer."

"Yeah, there's only so much happiness of meeting a talking reindeer a guy can take."

Wapol loomed over the still laughing Luffy, most likely pissed that Luffy forgot about him.

"It _has_ to be a sham!" Chessmarimo shouted as he-they-it... What the hell I'm going with he, launched into action again.

"It's not one!" Chopper said and he too, went back into action.

They ran at each other- well, Chopper more bounced at Chessmarimo, but that's beside the point. "Arm point, arm boost!" All the fur suddenly molded back into a body shape, this time with far more muscular arms than any other form.

Chessmarimo swung one of his hammers up at Chopper, only to have it snapped by Chopper's punch. And the same fate met another one of his hammers.

"Could a sham do that? If you thought that was something, you should see what my iron hooves do against _rocks_."

Luffy snapped out of his crazed laughter, "Whooooaaaa!"

"Not my hammers! What nerve!" Chessmarimo bristled, then pulled axes out from nowhere. "These will teach you! _Marimo super surprise quatro Ax!_" He raised the axes in X patterens, "_Snow splitting blades!_"

He brought them down, causing the snow to reacting in a way that normally shouldn't have been possible. It shot up in an X shape, and went straight for Chopper, making a cutting sound as it went through him and created large cuts in the caste wall. I stared, "That snow must have had enough force to take somebody's arms off!"

"Damn..." Sanji said in awe, "That reindeer can really take a hit."

There was a moment of stillness, Doctorine chuckled slightly.

"Damn!" Chessmarimo swore, "You dodged it." He smiled manically, "Let's see you dodge... _this!_" He ran at Chopper, axes held high, ready to attack. _"Omnidirectional stone splitah!_"

Chopper dodged each swing of an ax, changing form as necessary.

"Come on! You can do it!" I bit my cheek, watching this dance of Chessmarimo attacking and Chopper dodging was maddening!

"Ha! You expect to defeat me like that! You're not attacking, you're just dodging!

There had to be some structure to it all, Chopper wasn't just dodging, he was deliberately _trying_ to get farther and farther away from Chessmarimo. He said something, and changed back into his hybrid form. "I wasn't just dodging your swings." He said, staring straight at his opponent, "I was looking for your weak spot."

"Huh?!"

"_**SCOPE!**_" He brought his hooves together, and focused.

A moment passed, "A.. A beam!" Luffy said, "He's gonna shoot a beam!"

"No he's not, you idiot!" Sanji shouted.

"Hey!" Luffy stared at him, annoyed, "You shut your mouth! I'm telling you, it's gotta be a beam!"

Sanji glared, "How do you know that, huh, mr. Smart-guy?"

"I just do!"

"Fine! What _kind_ of beam?"

"A ginormous one!"

"**BOYS STOP FIGHTING!**" I screamed.

"Any thing for you~"

"Sorry..."

Meanwhile, Chessmarimo seemed to snap out of his trance, "Looking for my weak spot, huh? Well I've got some news for you!"

Everyone was watching this go down, but I had a nagging feeling there was something we were forgetting. Something big...

"I don't have one, and your little parlor tricks can't save you now! Soon you're about to find out that _you're_ the one who's going to be finished!" He was right up in Chopper's face now, swinging one of his axes down.

Chopper jumped up, just narrowly dodging it. I tried to follow him with my eyes, but... he just vanished.

"Where'd he go?"

Everyone looked around for him, until the snow just at Chessmarimo's feet broke apart reavealing Chopper in Arm point. He swung his right hoof up, hitting Chessmarimo right in the jaw. Sending him flying.

Chopper went back to his hybrid form and dusted off his hat. "Ah, three minutes."

Luffy let out a grand cheer, "Alright! Wow! You were incredible, reindeer! No! You were more than incredible! No! You were even more than that! You were-"

"Shut up!" Chopper shouted, smiling as wide as possible and red as a beet.

"Hahehaha!" Luffy laughed, this was obviously a little to much for him to remember that there was still Wapol to deal with.

Speaking of...

_Where is Wapol?_ I glanced around, "Ummm..." I frowned, "Sanji..."

"Hm?"

"Isn't someone... missing?"

Sanji looked around as well, "Yeah... Hey Luffy?"

"Yeah?"

"Where's that guy?"

"That guy who?"

"That tin-plated bastard! He's not here!"

"WHA-!?" Luffy began looking around in sheer panic.

"Well..." Doctorine looked down at the ground, "Since his hippo got knocked away I doubt he got very far.."

"Yeah, but how?" Luffy asked, "When'd he go!?"

Sanji bristled, "Probably when you were drooling over those transformations!"

"how sneaky!" Luffy huffed, "I'll find him! Where do you think he ran off too!?"

I sighed, "Well, if I had to guess, I'd assume the castle. It's the only place _to_ go."

"Yeah, Leanah's right... there's just the castle." Then something dawned on Sanji, "Nami's all alone in there!"

Luffy took off, running into the castle, yelling as he did so.

Sanji pushed off of me and ran inside as well, "If he lays a finger on her I'll chop him up and feed him to the sharks!"

"Hold it!"

"Sanji, your back!" I started after him, but Doctorine grabbed my arm.

"If the nincompoop has a death wish, we can't stop him."

I sighed. "I should still go after them. I mea-"

"No, you shouldn't go over-exerting yourself, you're still recovering as well."

"I feel fine, doctorine!" I shook her off my arm, "I haven't hallucinated, I'm getting plenty of water, my hands aren't shaky, and some of my memories are even returning! I'm not sleep deprived!"

She just stared at me.

I sighed, "Fine..."

"Doctorine..." Chopper said softly.

I just barely glanced back at the reindeer, as Doctorine smiled slightly.

He pulled his hat down over his face, "Did you hear what that guy said about me?" He paused, I could guess he was blushing like a maniac. "He called me his friend."

I didn't want to ruin the moment by saying anything.

"Girl." Doctorine addressed me in a quiet voice.

"Yeah." I answered in an equally quiet voice.

"You and your friends seem very close."

I nodded, "Yeah, we're almost like one big messed up family." I reached up to fix my bandana, but it wasn't there. "My bandana..." I pat down my pockets, I knew I put Shanks's one in my pockets. "Where..."

"Looking for this?" Doctorine held out my bandanas. "Heeheeheehee. I took them for safe keeping after you passed out."

I grabbed it from her. "So you know then?"

"Girl, I have no idea what you're talking about." She smiled, and leaned against the castle wall.

There was an explosion from the other tower, like a cannon going off.

We waited a minute in silence.

"Chopper, are you worried about your friend?"

"No, Doctorine... Not a bit." The reindeer answered, I turned to see him better, "Know why? 'Cause he's a pirate."

"And a first-rate pirate, at that." I said, "There's nothing my captain can't handle."

"He's a little odd, though, isn't he?" Doctorine asked.

I nodded, "But... That's his charm. And probably his saving grace, no one can predict his movements."

There was another crash from the roof, and a yell that could only be Wapol's.

"Doctorine..." Chopper said.

"Yep. It seems like it's finally over." She became very reverent. "The long nightmare has reached it's end."

More Screams from Wapol anounced that Luffy was finishing the job.

"GUM-GUM..." I saw his hands stretch, "BAAAAAAAAAAZZZOOOOKKKAAAAA!"

Wapol was sent flying to some far distant land, not that I really cared or care.

I smiled, Luffy had just brought down a whole kingdom, and no one would ever care. "It's over."

Doctorine laughed, "So Drum kingdom ultimately fell to the skull and cross bones, eh?"

I nodded. "Yep."

Something large surfaced from the snow behind us, I turned to look. There was now a door where there hadn't been, and two people were coming out, one man wearing Wapol's colors and the other crouching behind him. I grabbed the hilt of the sword. Ready to attack if need be.

Luffy had the same idea, I guess, "RrrrraaaaaaAAAAAAHHHH!" He came shooting down from the roof towards the two newcomers.

The one not in Wapol's colors let out a shout, "L- LLUUUUFFY!"

The voice registered in my brain. _Usopp? Why is he here? Wait, if that's Usopp, then the guy next to him has to be Zoro... isn't he supposed to be guarding Merry with Carue?_

Luffy crashed into them, creating a giant snow mound as another person came out of the door.

_Blue hair.. _"Vivi!" I waved, then ran over to her. "Vivi, is everything OK?"

"Leanah? But- how did?"

Luffy surfaced from his created snow mound, laughing. Usopp and Zoro surfaced after him.

"What the hell was that about, Luffy!?" Zoro shouted.

"I thought you were bad guys!" Our captain was still laughing.

"In the idiot's defense," I said, pointing to Zoro's coat, "You are wearing a coat Wapol's men wear."

Luffy stopped laughing, but was still smiled, "I'm really surprised you guys came up here. Well, not you, Zoro, but you, Usopp. Aren't you normally scared of doing stuff like climbing mountains?"

Usopp laughed, it was a fake one, but a good try, "Yeah right! Where ever there's a mountain that needs climbing, I'll be there to climb it. But let me tell you, it wasn't easy climbing hand over hand until we reached the top!"

"Actually..." Vivi said, stepping forward, "We took a rope way up here." Usopp deflated, and the princess walked up to Luffy, "Nami and Sanji... are they Okay?"

Luffy smiled, "They're both fine!"

I coughed, and whispered to myself "If you don't count Sanji nearly fracturing his spine, and all of them almost succumbing to frostbite..."

Vivi didn't hear me, which was good, I suppose, she didn't need to be worrying about that.

Usopp was just blathering on about how truly brave he was, and that he wasn't a coward.

I sighed, pulling tighter on my coat.

"So..." Zoro said turning to Luffy, "What were you doing on top of the castle?"

"Beating the crap out of the king."

I almost laughed at how nonchalant Luffy was when he said it.

Zoro met the statement wit dull surprise. "Oh. Okay."

Dalton hobbled out of the door way just in time to hear Luffy say that. "You mean that person I saw flying through the air... was actually Wapol?" He was far more surprised. "You beat him?"

"Yeeup, I sure did!"

"And his two henchmen, what happened to them?"

"If you're talking about the tow guys that became Chessmarimo..." I started.

"The reindeer beat them up."

"What?" Dalton asked, utterly confused, "A reindeer? But-"

Luffy rudely interrupted, "Oh hey! Usopp, I made a new friend! You'll love to meet him, get this: He's a reindeer!"

Usopp stopped spinning his tale of a giant condor bird, to look at Luffy, bringing his goggles up. "Hm? A reindeer?"

"A reindeer..." Dalton repeated.

"Tony Tony Chopper to be exact." I said, rubbing my arms. A shuffling sound came form the small grove of trees next to us. We looked, and saw Chopper... I guess he was trying to hide... but he had it backwards.

"It.. It is you!" Dalton said. I now felt awkward and shuffled back next to Zoro. This was a moment for Dalton, and Dalton alone. "Blue nose... you never gave up... you never stopped fighting. Believing in what this county could be one day." The former royal guard fell to his knees and bowed. "And now, thanks to you... Drum kingdom... it can finally be reborn."

This was a very touching moment, having listened to Dalton speak about how Wapol was before, and now a new, better nation can rise from the ashes of Drum kingdom.

A whole slew of poorly armed, obivously not trained soliders came running out from the doorway. They reacted in confusion.

"What is that strange creature behind that tree?"

"It... it almost looks like a reindeer!"

"No! You're wrong! It's a.. a monster!"

Several of them raised their guns and aimed.

"No! Don't shoot him!" Dalton yelled.

Usopp didn't quite get that Chopper was friendly, "AAAAAHHHH IT'S A YETI! SOMEBODY SHOOT IT!"

A few villager's cocked their guns, causing Chopper to run in fear.

"I SWEAR IF ANYONE SHOOTS I WILL PERSONALLY BEHEAD THEM!" I screamed, drawing the sword and moving to block at least some of the potential shots. They got the message

Luffy hit Usopp on the head. "ARG! You idiot! That's not a Yeti, that's our new friend!"

"He's your friend!?"

Luffy huffed, "You guys scared him so bad he ran away!" He started off towards the forest, "I'll bring him back so you can meet him, you jerks!"

And he was met with one angry, "HEY!" from the villagers as he chased after Chopper, again.

Although you couldn't see it, it was pretty clear what was going on from the screams of pure terror and Luffy shouting, "Reindeer! Wait! I want you to come meet my friends! They really want to meet you!"

"No they don't! They want to shoot me!"

"That's just because they don't know you yet! COME BACK!"

I laughed, almost hysterically.

"Are you alright?" Zoro asked.

I looked at him, trying to stifle my laughter. "Me? Uhm... Well... I've gotten about 3 hours of sleep total over the past three days, met a talking transforming reindeer doctor and helped bring down a nation! I'm fine!"

My fellow swordsperson looked at me like I was crazy. And sure as hell I was. "Sure you are."

"Darn skippy I am!" I smiled.

**Author's note**:

OK. So I meant to have this chapter out by around this time last week, but then FUNimation did that "Can Scott Porter watch 206 Episodes of One Piece by it's air date on the 19th at 1 AM EST" Livestream and... well... there went my week.I'm happy to announce that while this sleep deprivation stunt will hurt Leanah at the moment, there are some unexpected blessings that come with it. Like say... Her getting little bits a pieces of her memory, and even returning to some old habits (No, not... _that_ old habit- you know the one I mean-, She's passed that, and not alcoholism, that is a current habit that will haunt her for the rest of her life).

Gosh that livesteam was fun though. I kind of miss it since it ended Saturday morning *sigh* Oh well, we're moving on to a few of my favorite planned plot points soon! (I will give you three hints: The first has to do with a confession, the second has to do with a certain _someone_ appearing in the next arc, and the third involves one of my favorite marines (not Smoker).)

Oh! When next I post a chapter, my birthday will have passed! I'm a May 22nder, Woot Woot! Well, I'll see you later!

Your ever willing author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	39. Cherry Blossom Goodbye! On to Alabasta!

Luffy continued to chase Chopper, there would be moments of silence followed by "WAIT! REINDEER! I JUST WANT TO TALK!"

Dalton wavered, then collapsed, Usopp and Vivi ran over to him, "Dalton, are you sure you're alright?"

"Yes," He answered, "I'm just a little worn out, some rest and I'll be fine."

"Hey." Doctorine shouted, "Hey you." She was, more or less, speaking to Zoro as opposed to everyone else gathered outside the castle.

Zoro looked over at her, a scowl on his face. The other people were much less... hostile, "Doctor... Kureha!"

"Yes, nice to see you too, now be useful and take the injured guy to the medical ward."

Some form of recognition set into Zoro, "Hey, I remember her! You're that damn old hag from befo-"

I looked away as Doctorine handed Zoro a beating. When I looked back, Doctorine was standing, arms casually folded, over Zoro.

"Well, get moving!" She ordered.

"Yes ma'am!"

"And I'd suggest you hurry, unless you want to be in the kind of pain this man is."

That was a great motivator. The villagers gathered around Dalton and helped him up, taking him into the castle.

Vivi glanced over, "Leanah, Are you coming?"

I stared down at the still-unconscious Zoro. "I'm gonna revive Zoro."

"Alright, just don't stay out here to long. You'll catch a cold."

"I hear ya." I said, waving the princess inside. "I can take care of myself." she walked into the castle. I looked over at Usopp, "Aren't you going inside too?"

"And miss being able to build my Snow monster army?" He laughed.

I chuckled, and pulled my fallen comrade to his feet, "Hey Zoro." I flicked his ear, "Snap out of it."

He twitched, and I flicked his ear again. That's when he came back to the world of the living.

He pushed off of me, and dusted himself off. I stepped back, then started walking towards the castle.

"How did you get up here?" Zoro asked, following.

"Well," I waved my hand dismissively, "I was on my way to Gyasta, then I started hallucinating and met Doctorine on the way, she diagnosed me with sleep deprivation, which is true, I've gotten roughly three hours of sleep in the last three days, not including the hour and a half I got while at the castle."

Zoro stopped, and I stopped as well, "Wait..." He said, crossing his arms. "You mean you haven't slept at all since we left Little Garden?"

"Three hours." I defended, "I've slept some..."

"Three hours isn't enough, no wonder you've been so ragged these past few days."

I turned to face him,"Pasted few days!? You've only known me for EIGHT."

"Still! If you want to get stronger and be a good fighter you have to take better care of yourself!" He half-shouted.

My eye twitched, "Says the man who tries to train full force with stitches in!"

"_I'm_ trying to keep in top form! You're on a path to get yourself killed!"

"Oh yeah!? What if your stitches had popped and your wounds got infected? How would you expect to beat Hawk-eyes with one leg!?"

"At least I'd be alive!"

We were right up in each other's faces, shouting.

"Sure, but he wouldn't fight you!"

"How do you know that?!"

"I JUST DO!"

"THERE'S NO WAY YOU CAN KNOW THAT!"

"HE WOULDN'T FIGHT MY DAD AFTER HE LOST HIS ARM!"

Usopp stopped and Zoro nearly jumped back, "Your dad fought Hawk-eyes!?"

I stood there for a moment. "Did I say dad..?"

"YES!"

"Oh..." I tilted my head, "I meant my old captain..." I frowned, turning around, "Maybe all this not-sleeping _is_ getting to me..."

"OH YA THINK!?"

I turned back around, "Changing the subject, how did _you_ get here?! And why do you have that coat?"

He glared, "I decided I would do some training... so I went ice water swimming."

"SWIIMING!?" I shouted, once again getting in his face. "Zoro, I told you to keep dry!"

"You said keep the _bandages_ dry! And I did, they're back on the ship!" Usopp shrugged and continued building his snow monster army as Zoro and I fought.

"I _meant_ keep your _wounds_ dry!"

"You'd said they healed nicely!"

"That doesn't mean you can go and do what ever!"

"Hehehehehehehe." Doctorine's laugh interrupted our fight. "If you two are going to continue fighting, maybe you should continue fighting inside, where it's warmer."

"It's freezing in the castle though, unless you want us to fight near the medical rooms." I looked back at Doctorine.

"It was just a suggestion." The doctor turned on her heel, and walked back into the large snow covered castle.

I huffed, turning back to Zoro, who was still fuming. "Alright, there's only one way we're going to settle this." I drew my sword.

"Fine." He pulled his bandana off his arm and tied it around his head, then drew the Wado Ichimonji from its sheath, "And since you're not even using your swords, I'll only use one."

"You're on!" I ran at him, he dodged right. I spun, trying to kick him.

He jumped back and initiated his own string of attacks. First he went for my feet, I jumped, he pulled his sword up now going for my right arm. I blocked with the katana just in time. Once I got my footing again, Zoro had vanished.

I looked around, _Where is he? He's gotta be around here somewhere!_ I turned, and turned again, _Where!?_ A perfect picture formed in my head, _Zoro was going to attack from..._ "My left?!" I turned, knocking his blade out of the way.

"What?!" He jumped back, keeping a tight grip on his blade.

Being that I only had four and a half hours of sleep under my belt in four days, I wasn't doing very well in the thought department, The best I could offer was a shrug, at this point I was ready to chalk it up to dumb luck. "I got lucky."

Zoro didn't seem so sure, "Right."

I side-stepped and lost my footing in the snow, and fell "Arg!"

"Pft..." He burst out laughing.

"Not Freakin' funny!" I shouted, getting to my feet. "Seriously, I'm not on my top game right now..."

"Well that's obvious."

I sneered at Zoro, then sheathed the katana, "You win this round..." I crossed my arms, mumbling to myself, "'S obvious I'm just gonna end up hurting myself if I try to fight you right n-." I faltered in my footing again, and fell. "I think... I'll just sit down." My brain felt fuzzy again, I was really either going to need a good drink, or a good night's rest... or both.

Zoro sat down in the snow not to far away.

I laid back, deciding I'd try to make a snow angel, but wound up falling a sleep instead.

There was a building, it was about two stories, huge and grey, a feeling of being crushed gripped my system as I pulled on one of the glass doors to gain entrance. There were face-less people all around me, focusing on someone next to them or the doors ahead. I had a bad feeling nothing good was going to come of me being there. True enough, I tripped on something, and landed on my face. I struggled to my knees.

"Look at her!" One of the face-less on-lookers around me said, "She just tripped over thin air!" everyone around me laughed.

I flushed, embarrassed. Slowly I picked myself up.

"Wait, isn't she that girl who passed out in her math class a few days ago?"

"Wow, so she's a floozy _and_ uncoordinated!" More laughter.

Something burned underneath my sleeves, I could only assume what.

"Hey! You all stop that right now!" A voice shouted. I heard heels click against the tile floor and stop next to me.

I looked up at her, she was about my height, had long light brown hair and purple highlights. "Leave her alone you jerks!"

The crowd suddenly dissipated, "Th- thanks." I said in a hushed voice.

"No problem." The girl looked down at me, smiling. "I'm just glad I was there to stop them. I know you haven't been doing well since... well... you know."

I sat up, "Yeah..."

"You gonna be okay?"

I looked down at the floor, "I don't know..." I sighed, "Mom didn't come home last night."

"So you spent more time with Mr. Donovan?"

I grabbed her shoulder and pulled myself up, "Nah, he couldn't be there. He had some of his own business that some how got him out of his house."

"Amazing!"

We walked into the building. "I know. It was really weird..."

"Will you come with me to the cooking classroom?" She asked, adjusting her backpack strap

I pulled a thin, sliver go-phone out of my pocket, checking the time. "Wait, why? I mean..." I bit my lip, "We have APUSH first period, there's no way we'll make it there and back by the bell."

The girl slung and arm around my shoulder, "Don't worry. If Mr. Jackson asks, just let me do the talking."

I sighed, I knew I wasn't going to get out of it no matter what I said. "Fine. I'll go, Mar-"

"REINDEEEEEEER COME OUT AND JOIN MY CCCCCRRRREEEEEWWWW!"

I shot up, once again rudely awoken by Luffy screaming.

"HEY! DEER! COME BE A PART OF MY CRRRREEEEWWW!"

I looked around, it was night time, I was covered in snow, Usopp's Snow monster army had become just a snow man army, and Luffy was screaming at the top of his lungs not to far away.

"Come on, Luffy." I heard Usopp say, "Why don't you just give it up, you've been tracking him forever and he still hasn't shown up."

"He's not interested in becoming a pirate, you're just going to have to accept that."

"Not true!" Luffy shouted, pointing at Zoro, "I want the reindeer to be a pirate with us!"

"JUST BECAUSE YOU WANT SOMETHING DOESN'T MEAN YOU'RE GOING TO GET IT!" Zoro shouted.

I stood up, flicking the snow off of me, "Seriously, Luffy, the world doesn't work like that. I want my memories back, does that mean I'm going to get them back?"

"Yes!" He declared.

I glared at our captain, "No."

Luffy turned to the castle, "REINDEEEEEER! COME OUT AND BE A PIRATE WITH US!" He shouted more and more, I rolled my eyes and tried to ignore it.

Snow crunch in the forest, and Chopper emerged.

"Reindeer-guy!" Everyone was watching the reindeer. Luffy threw his hands into the air. "Hey, you're gonna come on our ship and be a pirate with us. OK?" He said it as if it were just a fact.

"I can't." Chopper insisted.

"Sure you can, reindeer! It's a whole lotta fun!"

"That's not a very good argument." Usopp pointed out.

"I don't think Luffy cares.."

"I can't..." Chopper repeated, "I'm a reindeer not a human! I have antlers and hooves!" He looked down at his hands, "Don't you see?" He was really getting wound up, "I even have a blue nose!" My heart fractured for him, he spent his entire life behind ignored and chased, called a monster. "OK... so maybe I do wanna be a pirate, but I can't ever be one of you! I'm a monster, I can't be your friend and I can't be a pirate on your ship, you see!" He took a breath, "I'm just here to say..." He bowed, "Thank you. Thank you for protecting Doctor's flag, and... I appreciate you asking me to join your ship... that was really nice. So thank you." He was beginning to cry, you could hear it in his voice.

A moment of silence passed, his words sinking in.

"I'm going to stay here..." He looked up at us, smiling, "But if you wanted too, you could stop by here again!"

"SHUT UP!" Luffy interrupted, shouting at the top of his lungs, "LET'S GOOOOOO!"

Chopper was crying, but he'd finally given i- I mean- _accepted_ Luffy's invitation to join the crew.

"Most people don't make friends by telling people to shut up." Zoro grumbled.

"Luffy's not most people." I pointed out.

After Chopper got his crying under control, He ran towards the castle, pausing he said, "I gotta go get my stuff and say goodbye to Doctorine."

So we waited. Something nagged at me, there was just something that made me tense about coming events.

"Leanah, is something wrong?" Nami asked.

I shifted, "Ah... I don't know... I just get the feeling that we should be getting ready to run." I crossed my arms, turning to her.

"What would give you that feeling?"

"Well... just think of Doctorine, and then think of the one sure fire way she could get Chopper to leave quickly."

Nami shrugged, "You're just jumping to conclusions."

We waited a little longer. Usopp asked Nami about her health.

Luffy was rolling around on a snow ball he'd made. "Hey, I think we should go say bye to that Dalton guy."

"Don't be so thoughtless, he lived with Doctorine for six years of his life, he needs sometime alone with her. I'm sure it's going to be really sad for them both."

I got that sinking feeling when you just know that something is going to go downhill very fast. I paced in the snow, worried.

A large commotion started in the castle, shouting, crashing, and other noises that indicated a fight.

Nami scoffed, "Would you listen to that? Seriously, people need to be more respectful, there are two people saying goodbye in there."

_I think that might be the goodbye..._

I was proven right when Chopper came running out of the castle in full deer form pulling the sleigh behind him.

"Huh?" Nami tilted her head slightly. "Chopper what's going-"

"Everybody!" Chopper shouted, "Get in! No time to explain!"

"What?"

"You heard him!" I said, "Get in!" I sprinted towards the sleigh, using every bit of the energy I'd gotten from napping to jump in.

Everyone else jumped in after Doctorine came out throwing various weapons at us.

"What the hell!" Nami shrieked, keeping a tight grip on the still-passed-out Sanji.

"You... see?" I huffed, "That was the... good bye."

"SHUT UP!" Nami and Vivi ran as fast as it seemed they could to catch up with the sleigh, I extended my hand to help, they both tossed Sanji at me, which was very surprising.

"Ouf!" He landed right on top of me, nearly crushing me. I, or at least made an effort to, push him off. "God! Sanji you're so heavy!"

The chef let out an inhumane moan, he was probably still in some sort of pain. A spike of guilt ran through me, at least until one of his hands landed on a spot that was just to _damn_ convenient for a person who was suppose to be passed out.

"No!" I punched him, sending his to the other side of the sleigh.

Vivi and Nami hopped in, "Why'd you punch him?"

I shook my fist, "The ass isn't quite passed out, he tried to grope me!"

Zoro hopped in after, "Serves the dumb-ass chef right."

"Moss... head..." Sanji moaned.

That's when Chopper jumped off the cliff, and Luffy still wasn't on board, not that he ever really did, he seemed to enjoy hanging off the back while the rest of us screamed in terror.

The landing was pretty rough, it made my brain hurt. That and my hands hurt from holding on to the sleigh so tightly. My knuckles were white, almost like... _Like on Shanks's ship..._I stared at the trees as they zoomed passed. _That's right... I was remembering things even back then, too. Though... how I could have remembered those three joining is a mystery. A mystery only my memory can solve._ I crossed my arms, _Maybe Chopper can help with getting my memories back... but..._ My eyes rested on our young, half-reindeer half-human, doctor. _He's just lost his famliy. He seems to be going strong now... but he has to be crying._ My heart seized, I felt like I could understand Chopper's feelings, since we'd arrived on Drum Island we'd brought with us ghosts from the horrid history of the fallen nation.

Six years... Six years without resolution, and all of it... all of it was resolved in a few hours. And now, he had made his decision, he was leaving with us. Becoming a pirate. How harshly he was thrown out, but that was really the only Doctorine knew how to do things. Or, tho only way to stop Chopper from seeing her cry.

Getting him to lighten up was going to be tough unless something big happened. I smiled, _Big things happen all the time._

"I see it!" Luffy shouted, "I see the Gong Merry!" True enough our ship was on the horizon.

Chopper turned suddenly, the sleigh coming to a stop next to the ship.

"Leanah," Nami shouted, I turned in time to catch to two very familiar weapons.

I held Ami and Ana close, "Oh! I missed you two!"

"Weird." Zoro commented as he passed by.

"Weird?" I shouted, following behind, "You're weird. I got these swords from someone very important to me." I climbed up into the ship, "And what about you? You can't possibly tell me that you're not attached to your swords."

He grumbled something and chose not to reply.

"SANJI!" Luffy shouted, "FOOOOOD!"

"Right," The chef stood up, and hobbled to the kitchen, "Captain."

"Will he be OK?" Chopper asked, "He was just in surgery!"

I crossed my arms, walking over to him. "Believe me, when that man is in the kitchen, no matter how hurt he is, he'll always deliver the best food you've ever eaten."

The reindeer's eyes widened, and then he screamed, "Ah!" He jumped around, pressing his whooves to his head, "I left my backpack! All my medical supplies were in there!"

Nami looked at Chopper, "Wait..." She hefted a small blue backpack with an X on it. "Is this it?"

"My backpack!" Chopper grabbed the pack from Nami. "That's weird..."

"I thought you put it in there." Nami said.

"Hm.. And I was sure Doctorine had hidden my swords, but they were in the sleigh as well." I clicked my tongue, "Makes you wonder doesn't it?"

Chopper looked like he was about to cry. But Luffy gave him no time, "LET'S PARTY!" He dashed by, snatching Chopper up and stopping less than a foot away from Usopp.

I chuckled, and leaned- Zoro would later tell me I had collapsed, and not leaned, but what does he know- on the railing. I was tired, I know, that should be obvious by now to all of you, but shut up, I'm telling this story.

I really wanted to just get some sleep, but I didn't want to until I knew Chopper would be okay. I frowned, everyone was gathered around our newest crew mate, _I should be happy, so why do I feel so... detached from this situation?_

The party got underway, I eventually joined the festivities. Sanji brought out juice and beer, I, having my shameful addiction, took the beer, as did Nami and Zoro. Sanji didn't have anything thing to drink because he still had cooking to do. Luffy, Usopp and Chopper all had juice.

I laughed, "We maybe the only pirate crew where half of us only drink juice."

Luffy smiled, "It doesn't matter! We're gonna be the best pirates in the whole world!"

"Especially now that we have an amazing doctor." Nami smiled at Chopper.

The doctor in question started dancing, "You can't flatter me, you ass!"

/He's really not good at hiding his emotions./ I thought, taking a drink. Sanji brought out food, and passed it around to all of us.

It wasn't long before Chopper got a solemn look on his face again, taking only small bites from his food. I frowned. "Hey, Luffy!" I shouted, gesturing to him with my glass, "Show Chopper that thing you do with chopsticks."

"What?" The small doctor was thoroughly confused.

"Hm?" Luffy looked confused, his mouth absolutely full of food. "Fhat thin'?"

"You know... That thing where you put the chopsticks-"

"Oh!" Luffy gulped down the food in had in his mouth and turned away. When he turned back he had the chopsticks wedged long ways between his lips, "Look Hopper!" He added to the silliness by jumping around and making odd gestures with his hands.

Chopper laughed, grabbing on to Usopp to keep up, Usopp was doing the same to him, which is probably why they both collapsed.

After they got their stuff together Chopper attempted the same, he pulled it of successfully, only looking more cute than silly.

That's when we heard the cannon fire.

Everyone turned towards Drum Island to see the pink spreading through the air, making the Drum Rockies look just like a cherry blossom tree.

"It's beautiful." I got transfixed in the spreading pink snow.

"DOOCCCTORIIIINNNEEE!" Chopper cried, snapping the chopsticks he'd had in his mouth. I sighed, and I was now completely sure, Chopper would be fine.

Luffy raised his glass as the pink snow began to descend on the Merry, "Cheers!" He shouted.

The rest of us raised our glasses, "Cheers!"

"To new crew mates and onward to Alabasta!"

"Yeah!"

Everyone downed their glass.

**Author's Note:**

I am a shame to all serial fanfic authors.

You've been waiting for this chapter since May, and I only just finished it today.

I AM SO SORRRRRRYYYYYYYY! FORGIVE ME PLEASE!

On the upside, only two more chapters until You-Know-Who is introduced! *yay*

Your ever willing author,  
>kari910<p> 


	40. Bonding, Ballerina-men, and Alabasta

"Phew." I set my glass down, "Well, I think it's time I get some quality rest." I walked over to the entrance to the girl's room, I looked up at Nami, "Nami... Would it be alright if I...?"

The navigator gave me a thumbs up, "Sure."

"Thanks." I walked down the stairs and didn't even change out of the clothes I was in, I just flopped on the bed and passed out.

I didn't dream, or if I did I don't remember it. All I remember is passing out on the bed, and waking up with the covers over me and smelling something absolutely _delicious_.

"Mmm..." I rolled over, then back, and sat up.

"You're finally awake." I looked over at the voice. It was Vivi.

"Hey.." I rubbed my eyes, "What time is it?"

"About five PM." She placed a bowl of soup on my lap, "You slept almost the whole day away."

I stared at her, "Why didn't anyone wake me up?"

"Chopper advised us to let you sleep." She said, "He's already taken charge of this ships health."

I sighed and started eating the soup. It tasted as good as it smelled, it seemed to be some kind of cheese soup or something, it didn't matter. I was hungry.

"After you eat you should come up for some fresh air."

I nodded, "Alright." I sat there, thinking. "I was a bigger problem than I was a help... wasn't I?"

"I wouldn't say that." Vivi was trying to be comforting.

"But I didn't do anything, I just wondered around half-dead from sleep deprivation." I wanted to punch something, but if I had I would've spilled the soup.

"Actually," Vivi smiled again, "Doctorine said she wouldn't have known to go back if you hadn't tracked her down like you had." She stood up, "She said that Luffy's frost bite could've been much worse if you hadn't told her they were going up the mountain." And with that walked out of the room.

I sat there in relative silence, happy I had helped in some way. I finished the soup and got dressed. I felt great, better than I had felt in days. When I got up on deck I was blinded by the sun, and made deaf by the captain.

"LEANAH, YOU'RE AWAKE!"

I covered my ears, "Ow... Yes I am, please refrain from shouting my ears off."

"OK." Luffy hopped down in front of me, "You look better!"

I smiled, "I'm feeling better, too."

Luffy turned, "Chopper!"

The small doctor came out of the kitchen, smiling.

"Well, I guess I missed an awesome party last night." I joked.

Chopper nodded, "Yeah, but you were recovering." He walked over to me, "How are you feeling?"

"I'm not tired, no hallucinations, no strange dreams."

"Dreams?" Luffy almost rocketed himself at my face, "What were they about?"

I pushed him away, "I don't know, they were weird! I was living somewhere else."

"Where?" He asked, "Could it be your old home? Where you lived before coming a pirate?"

"I... I don't know!" I wanted to scream, "Does it matter?"

"Luffy!" Chopper shouted, "Don't push her! If she has amnesia her memory will come back on it's own!"

"Oh." He jumped back, "OK." Luffy ran to pester someone else.

I sighed, looking at Chopper, "Thanks."

"No problem."

I shifted, "Soooo... What's the word, Doc? Any advice?"

"Oh," He handed me a vial he'd been keeping somewhere on his person, "Drink that before you go to bed, it should take care of the insomnia, and while you recover from the sleep deprivation you should take it easy and not train as much."

I nodded, slipping the vial into my pocket. "Alright. I guess I'll... Help out elsewhere then." I inched into the kitchen, then remembered something, "Oh, Chopper. I guess I should fill you in on what I've been doing as the ships impromptu nurse."

His eyes lit up, "That would be great."

I pointed to the kitchen with my free hand, "After you, Doctor Chopper."

He walked back into the kitchen and hopped up on the bench, I sat next to him, "OK, so," I poked the table, "Sanji keeps us all well fed, we'll never need to worry about being under-fed." I paused looking at the Chef who was currently staring out the window at Nami, "Isn't that right, Sanji?"

He immediately whipped around, hearts in his eyes, "Of course, Leanah-dear! You'll never have to worry about that kind of icky stuff as long as I'm the chef of this ship!"

Chopper stared at the chef wide-eyed. I leaned in close, "Get used to that, it's his natural response to women." The small doctor nodded slowly, "Any way, other than that, we do get into a lot of fights, but we mostly come out unscathed, except Zoro, he gets hurt a lot."

"In stupid ways." Sanji criticized, lighting a cigarette as he walked back to the window.

I sighed, "He tends to train himself really hard, even when injured. For instance, just a while ago he almost cut off his feet-"

"WHAT?" Chopper jumped up, really worried. "He almost had his feet cut off?!"

I shook my head, "No, no. _He_ almost cut off _his own_ feet." Chopper's expression changed from worried to horrified. "Ah!" I waved my hands, "There was a very good reason for why he did it, I swear."

"But he nearly cut off his feet!"

"Calm down! I said he had a good reason, besides, his wounds healed, kind of..."

Chopper calmed down, "Kind of?"

I gulped, "Well... I mean, they did heal, I removed the stitches, but... Well, he went ice water swimming when we were at Drum Island."

"What?" Chopper screamed.

"He's an idiot, but now that you're here." I pat his shoulder, smiling widely, "I don't have to worry about dealing with him any more, except when we spar. Speaking of, maybe you should go give him your professional opinions on his wounds."

Chopper gulped and walked out of the kitchen, casting one glance back before going off to find Zoro.

A small pang of guilt welling in my chest, I turned, "Hey Sanji," I stood up and walked over to the sink, "Do you mind if I help out in the kitchen?"

"Hm?" He looked over at me, "Well, right now there's nothing that really needs to be done except the prep for dinner and the dishes."

"I don't mind doing the dishes."

I helped him for the next few days, at first he was against it, but after a few days he literally jumped into action "Thank you for helping, Leanah dear!" Sanji danced happily around the kitchen, collecting dirty dishes.

I began washing the dishes in the sink. "I thought you might need help, and I'm not in the mood to do much else. Also... Chopper says I need to take things easy for a while."

Sanji slowed from jumping to just plain walking, He shut the door to the kitchen and deposited the dishes in the sink. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"Hm?"

"Why didn't you tell us you weren't getting any sleep?"

I focused on the dishes, "Hand me that cup?"

He did so, "We can't help if you don't talk to us." He said, "You haven't even told us if you have any family."

I sighed, washing out the cup. This was eerily similar to when Shanks got me to open up. This difference: Sanji was no Shanks. When the cup was clean I set it to the side, "That plate?" I pointed.

Sanji handed it to me, "Alright..." He took a drag, "I see, you don't have to say anything if you want. But, just know that we're here, OK?"

"I know." I said softly, setting the plate aside. Then I coughed, "The dinner prep?" I was purposefully not looking at the chef, blindly reaching for the next dish that had to be washed.

Sanji moved from the sink to the stove, and I switched the direction I was looking. We continued in silence for a while.

"I do have a family." I said finally. "I mean, I have to have one, I just..." I sighed again, "I guess you could say I was adopted by my last captain, I certainly think of him as a father."

"You mean that red haired guy, right?"

"Yeah."

"Why didn't you want me mentioning him around Luffy?"

"He's... he's a pretty famous pirate, in fact... He's one of the four emperors of the New World." I carefully stacked plates, glancing at Sanji to see his reaction. "But I'm not as strong as he is, and really I was more like a daughter than a crew mate."

He seemed oddly calm, "I guessed he was someone important, the way the old geezer reacted."

I frowned, "Really? I always thought he just normally acted like that."

"It was subtle." Sanji said, beginning to cut up ingredients. "Just how he handled the whole thing, normally new people were just left to fend for themselves, but he assigned you to me, even though you weren't even being hired as a chef."

And suddenly the reason Zeff had Sanji attached to my hip made sense. Sure, I could handle myself, but pirates rarely play to training rules, which was pretty much all I had done, Sanji had grown up around brutes like that, and was ready for anything. Zeff was protecting me, and Shanks is probably why he let me go so easily, too. I sighed again, "Well, now everything makes sense."

Then came a delayed reaction from Sanji, "Wait! _You're_ the one that emperor was bragging about!?"

I nodded, "I assume so." I put another clean dish to the side, "At least I think it was Shanks they were talking about, for all I know it might have been one of the other Emperors bragging about someone else, I never read the actual article."

"OK."

We lapsed into silence again. The next day I was helping with dishes again.

"Sanji..."

"Yes?"

"You want to know about my family, right?"

"Of course."

I stopped washing dishes, and turned to him, "I don't remember much, but I am remembering some." I stared at the ground. I told Sanji about what I could recall of the dreams at Doctorine's castle. Starting with the one where I was laughed at. While I was telling the stories, I watched the chef carefully, he stayed silent, at one point putting out his cigarette, I got to the part about the phone call from Mom and stopped.

Sanji had stopped chopping up food for dinner and was now looking at me with interest. "Go on."

"Well, he said that my mom and... my step-dad weren't going to be home in a while." I kicked at the floor, "The rest really isn't that important, but... I think my parents names are Riza and Shawn."

"So I guess that's it then, you're remembering."

I shook my head, "I don't know, It might have just been one elaborate dream. But..." I sighed, "There was just something that felt... _solid_ about it."

Sanji quickly lit another cigarette, "Leanah..."

"Yeah?" I looked up at him.

"If you do.. remember your family, are you going to want to go see them?"

I smiled and went back to washing dishes, "Why? I've got all you guys, and it would be a shame to abandon this journey half way through because I remembered something."

Sanji went back to cooking, "Maybe when you get your memories back we'll find out how you knew my name."

I tried to bite my lip, but stopped, remembering that I had put that lip stuff on. "Yeah, maybe." I put the last of the dishes away, then just sat down at the table. "..."

"What's wrong." He wasn't asking.

I stared at the table, "Well, I don't know... My past... the more I figure out about it, the more I'm not sure if I _want_ to remember. What I do remember... It just makes me feel like even more of an outsider."

"And yet, you're here." He said, "On the 'inside' with us."

"Ha. Ha. Ha." I laughed dryly. "I guess I should be glad Luffy would gladly accept an outsider like me into his crew because I happened to be blown into just the right place by a large gust of wind."

Sanji finished the prep, "Well, you were already on the boat and we were out to sea, there wasn't much we could've done."

I smiled, "True." I wiped my hands on my pants, "Could'a been worse, you guys could've tossed me into the ocean, then Smoker would've gotten me for sure."

"Why did that guy have it out for you?"

I clicked my tongue, "He saw me disembark my old captain's ship. Being a high-ish ranking marine he probably recognized the skull and cross bones."

"So he had it out for you before we arrived."

"Yep, but he never had enough evidence to prove I was a pirate, not that he couldn't tell... But he has more honor than most marines."

"Hm." Sanji turned around, contemplating something, "Should I make a snack?"

"Go for it." I said, "I mean, it's not like there's anything super interesting going on, I'm sure Luffy will love it." I sat down at the table, "If you need any help, I'll just gonna sit here."

In the blink of an eye, Sanji was expertly twirling a knife in his left hand, "I can do this. You just sit back and watch."

He sounded so proud you could almost feel it. "No arguments here." I rested my chin in the palm of my right hand and watched him cook up a snack for the crew. Golly, it was like watching a painter make a beautiful picture, you almost forgot he was cooking. Plus, watching him cook made me really nostalgic.

Time passed slowly, only interrupted by intelligible shouting from the deck.

"Here," Sanji turned around with a small tasting bowl, "Try this."

I took it, sipping the soup from it. "This is delicious!" I smiled.

"Not to over seasoned?"

I shook my head, "No, it's fine." I handed the dish back to him, "I'd say trust your instincts. You're a great chef."

He exploded with hearts and went back to cooking. He skipped over to the fridge and opened it. That's when he stopped.

"Is something wrong?" I asked. He turned slowly, taking a long drag on his cigarette. I frowned, "Don't tell me..."

"We need a lock on the fridge." Sanji walked out of the kitchen, a dark look on his face.

I got up and walked over to the fridge. All the cooked food except maybe half a days worth had been removed. I sighed, "Luffy..." I didn't want to see the impending beating Luffy would get, so I just stayed in the kitchen, laying on the bench.

Sanji reentered the kitchen after a little while, "It wasn't just Luffy."

"Don't tell me he's getting accomplices."

"He is." Sanji put out his cigarette. "Usopp, Chopper, and Carue have joined in."

I sat up, "It was only a matter of time, I suppose." He stalked over to the kitchen.

He sighed, "We're not going to have much food left... Barely enough to get us to Alabasta alive." He took a long drag. "I've got a little raw ingredients left, plus the soup I just made..."

I stood up, "Can I help?" I asked, "I mean, I've watched you cook the past few days."

He raised an eye brow as I approached the stove, "You're sure you want to help."

I smiled, "Of course, I'm pretty confident that I can make at least this one dish of equal or better taste than the stuff you make."

He quickly lit another cigarette, "That sounds like you're a little full of yourself."

I didn't reply, I just scooted to the counter space and started working to recreate on of Sanji's signature dishes. He watched over my shoulder like a hawk, silently critiquing my every move, and for once, I wasn't a frail and delicate woman to him, I was just another chef he was overseeing.

"Be careful not to over salt that."

"I know."

"Don't use ginger!"

"But it'll bring out the flavor more, don't you think?"

"Hm... I never thought of that."

"Oh shoot, I've added to much."

"Put this in to balance it out."

"You're right."

We spent most of the afternoon cooking several dishes to be stored in the fridge for the days to come. While we had been cooking Nami and Chopper came in, I got an idea.

I smiled sweetly, "Hey Chopper, could you try this?" I set a small portion of the soup dish I'd remade using Sanji's recipe.

The Doctor looked up from his book, then at the soup. "Uh... Sure." He seemed nervous, but once he took a sip his eyes lit up. "Oh wow! This tastes even better than it did before!"

I spun around poking Sanji in the chest, "Ha! I told you I could do it!"

He took a drag on his cigarette, "Come on, that was one dish, and It was the easiest out of all of them. Don't go getting full of yourself."

"Oh come on, I deserve a little credit." I whined.

We argued about credit up until just before Vivi barged in, "Nami, come quick! There's something strange going on!"

"Hm?"

The four of us walked out onto the deck.

Out in the middle of the ocean steam was rising. It was very pretty.

"Oh, it's just some steam rising from the ocean." Nami said.

"There's steam rising from the ocean?"

"Yeah, that's where magma is made..."

That's about when I zoned out. I rested my chin in the palm of my hand. _Steam... I bet it's going to smell absolutely terrible..._ I frowned, turning and walking down to the lower deck, "I'll be reading in the room." I said, waving my hand behind me.

It was much quieter down there then it was up on deck, and I was happy about that. I knelt down, rummaging through my suit case and pulling out my plain black bandana and tied it around my face, hoping that might lessen the smell of the gas when we passed through it. Then I walked over to the book shelf, we didn't have much other than geography books, _Actually... now that I think of it..._

I glanced to the work table, Nami had her maps spread all over it. I squinted, S_hould I? I mean, it sort of feels like I'm cheating on my crew..._ I slid into the chair and pulled out the Grand Line map. I slowly scanned the names. _Saffron... Saffron... How far is it down the Grand Line..._

I eventually found it. Saffron Island was a small place, very very close to the Calm Belt, and also very close to what looked like a pass to the other half of the Grand Line.

"Hm." I sat back in the chair as steam began flowing into the room, I pressed the bandana closer to my face and waited for it to pass, trying not to breath much.

My lungs greatly protested this, but I didn't want to take the risk of this steam smelling terrible. _Two minutes... Four minutes..._ I counted how long the steam stayed, taking very small breaths when absolutely needed. _Five minutes..._ The Steam started to dissipate. _Six minutes..._ The steam left completely. I pulled down the bandana taking in a huge breath of air.

"Thank god." I looked around the room, there was still a faint smell of rotten eggs. "Sulfur..." I sighed, standing up and walking over to the mini bar. I needed a drink. While under Chopper's supervision to make sure I wasn't going to wind up staying up three days in a row ever again, he'd also taken a note on my drinking "problem". Which of course, when I said I didn't have a problem he said:

"The first sign that someone has a problem is that they won't admit it."

He limited me to one glass of wine a day. And with how small this ship is, if I tired to get another, he'd find out somehow. I grabbed a bottle of wine and a glass, and poured. I hadn't had my glass yet today, and now was as good as any.

I took the glass back to the work table and sat down, taking a sip. There was some commotion up on deck, I brushed it off as Luffy doing something idiotic and just sat alone with my thoughts.

It was rare to catch a moment alone here. And when you could, it was great. One thing that everyone was always happy about was it seemed like after my stint with insomnia my brain seemed to be reconnecting with old memories. Like one of the more resent ones, I'd had a friend, her name was something like Maria or Mary, but the important thing was that I had known her for a really long time.

I didn't know where she was but I had a good feeling about her. I took another sip, a terrifying thought actually popping into my head, _Merry's pretty cramped with only nine of us. And Luffy intends to add more people. We should probably get a larger ship._ I shook my head, closing my eyes. _No... This ship is to important to replace._ I sighed, and felt far more relaxed than I had in days.

I felt something warm wrap around me, like a hug.

My head jolted up and the feeling was gone. I rubbed my eyes, "I must not have gotten enough sleep last night."

I stayed down there, sipping my wine and relaxing, until the boat started rocking uncontrollably, causing me to fall out of the chair. The glass landed harmlessly on the carpet, where only one or two drops fell out of the glass, because, hey I drink fast. I stumbled up the stairs and out the hatch, "What's going on?"

"FOOOD!" Luffy shouted.

"Food?"

"MONSTER!" That was a mix of both Chopper and Usopp.

I ran to the side of the cabin, leaning to see a giant cat rising from the water. "Oh, that kind of food."

The other swordsperson was over with Luffy in a flash and they were making threats at the sea-cat-fish. "If you two let that escape I'll kill you!" Sanji shouted as he burst out of the storage room.

"This is gonna be good." I whispered, watching the three make more threats at the sea-cat-fish. Then a whoosh of blue went right by me and slammed into the trio. "NO!" Vivi shrieked.

Luffy cradled a spot oh his head and whined, "But Vivi, why? It was fooooood."

Even Sanji whined, "Why? Why would you do that?"

"I can't let you eat a Seacat," Vivi explained, "Because Seacats are sacred animals in Alabasta."

I sighed, leaning against the cabin, "They probably only reside in this kind of weather climate."

"That's a fair bet," Nami said, "And if it's true, it means we're right on course." She raised her left arm, showing the Eternal Pose pointing firmly in one direction. She walked up the stairs, "Vivi, the wind and weather patterns seem to be stabilizing."

"Uh-huh." The princess turned, "We're entering the climate of Alabasta Island, that seacat rising out of the ocean is proof."

I walked up the stairs, joining the rest of the crew on the upper deck, "So we're really almost there." I almost couldn't believe it.

Zoro nodded out over the ocean, "Those things you see behind our shipe over there ar all the proof I need to prove we're getting close."

Everyone looked out in the detection he indicated, at least 20, maybe more, Baroque Works ships were sailing behind us.

"Jeeze that's a lot of ships." Luffy seemed like he was trying to count them all.

Usopp had his telescope out, "Th- They're all flying the Baroque Works flag!"

"It looks like all the Baroque Works agents are gathering. My guess..." Vivi said, "Is that those are the Billions, the subordinates under the officer agents."

"So that means that there are at least two hundred enemies waiting for us."

"The best that Baroque Works has to offer. The elite of the underlings." While Vivi was trying to act strong through this, her voice was starting to quiver. "This guys are bound to be a lot better than the bounty hunters at Whiskey Peak."

I shrugged, "I'm up for a challenge."

Usopp was frantically aiming the cannon, "Hurry up, let's just blow them all away!"

Luffy held his hands out to the panicking sharpshooter, "It'll be quicker if we just go over there and beat them up!" A monstrous noise came from Luffy's stomach, "Hold on though... I need to eat something."

"Come on, their not worth it." Zoro said, "Don't bother."

"Moss head's actually right, we need to keep our eyes on the prize or we might lose this all together." He held out his cigarette, a confident look on his face. "After all, nine against two hundred sucks."

"That's true, with Luffy out of commission due to hunger, the odds are slim, even with Zoro and Sanji being freakishly strong." I crossed my arms, "And I'm not sure how much I could do since I don't quite have the freakish strength Zoro does."

Zoro squinted, trying to figure out if I'd insulted him or not.

"Uh..." Chopper spoke up, "If we're going to be arriving soon, shouldn't we do it now?"

Luffy jumped, "Yeah! Go get the stuff, Chopper!" The doctor ran down to the lower deck and back up with a bunch of gauze and a black marker.

"What's going on?" Sanji and I asked.

Nami and Vivi looked at us. "Oh right," Nami said, "You two weren't here when it happened."

"When what happened?" I asked, slightly worried.

"When the ballerina face-change-y man was here!" Luffy got right up in my face.

I leaned back, "Who is that?"

"He means Mr. 2." Vivi said, "He got aboard our ship when we went through that steam earlier, he has the copy-copy fruit." She clutched her hand over her heart, "It allows you to copy someone body and voice completely."

"That's gonna be a pain in the ass to deal with." Sanji said, taking a drag on his cigarette.

Vivi looked over at Zoro, "Mr. Bushi- I mean, Zoro had an idea."

"You sure we can trust _his_ ideas?" Sanji asked.

Zoro raised his fist, "You got somethin' to say to me you shitty cook?"

"Just that your brain is rotten and leaking out through your hair!" He retorted.

"GUYS!" I shouted, "No fighting! That's not going to help this situation." I looked at Zoro, "So, fill us in."

Zoro explained his idea, grabbing the marker from Chopper and making a large black X on his left forearm. "See?"

I nodded, "That's actually a good idea."

He got that ridiculously offended look on his face. I just smiled, holding out my hand, "Hand me the marker."

He reluctantly handed it over, I grabbed my left sleeve, then paused. _Oh crap... huh..._ I stared at my arm for a moment before I took a deep breath and hiked up my sleeve to my elbow, revealing the pale yet visible scars there. I drew a large X, and passed the marker to someone else.

Zoro stared at the scars, "It's impolite to stare." I said, glaring up at him. "If you gotta question, then ask it."

He held up his hands and looked away. I held out my hand to Chopper for some gauze, he handed me enough for Zoro and I, I held out Zoro's strip to him, he took it, and effortlessly tied it around his arm, pulling it tight with his teeth, "Make shre itsh good ahnd tight. I don'sht want anyone fooled by the enemies disguises" He said.

I tried to tie mine myself, but I couldn't get the hang of it. "Could I get some help please?" I asked.

Sanji was at my side in a flash, "Of course, my dear." He tied the gauze tight around my wrist, after he did that he simply said in a soft voice, "Scars don't make you any less a beautiful woman."

"Thank you." I pulled up my other sleeve. Taking slow breaths, I managed to get comfortable with my sleeves not there. I gripped the bottom of my shirt, staring out at the sea as Usopp told Sanji the whole story of Mr. 2 being on the ship.

"Still, now we know that someone with his powers is among the enemy, so we need to be careful and be on our guard."

"So," Chopper said, "What should I do to fight this guy?"

Usopp took point on this question, he and Chopper had gotten really close over these few days. "Jsut do what you can do, and no one expects you to anything more. And if you get into trouble, run."

"Sounds like the pep talk he's always giving himself." Sanji remarked.

Carue warked, and I shrugged.

Chopper took the words to heart, "What ever it is I can do." He smiled.

Luffy rocketed to his perch on Merry's head, "I can see the island now!" He called ecclesiastically.

Vivi bit her lip, "We should dock in a town called Nanohana, we have to hide the ship."

Nami nodded, "Ok."

Our captain rocketted back to the main deck where we were all gathering, "Alright, whatever happens on that island, remember. This thing on all our arms is a symbol of our friendship!" We all gathered in a circle, left arms in. "Now, lets land, and EAT!" A moment passed, "Oh, and help Vivi." He quickly added.

We all sighed, "That's a side note?"

Nami instructed Luffy on the dangers of running off on his own, which he probably didn't listen to.

I smiled at the princess, "Excited to be home, Vivi?"

She matched my smile, "Very!" I noted that she was cradling the gauze wrapped X.

"We've still got a long way to go." I said.

"Yeah." She stared at the slowly nearing island, "A long way to go."

**Author's Note:**

Hello, hello, hello. We've reached Chapter 40, not quite the 50 mark, but getting there. I Give you a broad overveiw up to the cut off for this story:

You know who is introduced, Walking through the desert and the two cities, Rain Dinners, secret thing, Alubarna, another secret thing, _super_ secret thing, G-8 stuffs, Foxy stuffs, Memory hijinx, Marine troubles, Water 7 and CP-9, Thriller Bark + another memory hijinx, Sabaody things, separation bit, War, _super DUPER_ secret thing, First year of time skip.

That's why I was taking a while with this one, I wanted to figure out exactly where I was gonna cut this story off, because I'm certainly not going to have this be one long continuous thing.

Looking passed the timeskip things get notably darker in the story, for some obvious reasons and some that, right now, probably aren't so obvious. (Meaning: There might be a ratings bump between SEL and SEM (rack your brains my darling readers, the secret of what SE stands for is revealed soon))

Also in case any of you want to bother me for faster updates you can pester me on my tumblr: myownlittlecornerandchair

Your ever willing author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	41. The Missing Captain and the Odd Brother!

We didn't dock in port, but in a small alcove a short walk from the town. Vivi said that no one used that area for anything.

"Listen carefully guys, I want you all to do your best to control yourselves." Nami lectured.

"Of course, Nami!" Sanji replied happily.

"You do realize," Zoro said dryly, "That the one person who needs to hear that most has already jumped ship."

I leaned against Merry's railing, watching Luffy dash off into town. "Yeeeaaah. He's gone."

"GET BACK HERE!" Nami shouted as Luffy disappeared into the town.

Usopp stared in amazement. "He doesn't know the meaning of the word control."

Vivi looked disheartened, "What do we do now?"

"He's easy to find." Sanji said as he jumped off the ship.

"Yeah, look for the meat or the commotion and you'll find him." I said, jumping off after him. "I'll go find him before someone recognizes his 30 million berry face."

"Forget about him," Zoro grumbled as he climbed down the ladder, "He can take care of himself, let's focus on getting some food first, then we'll search for the idiot."

I sighed.

"I guess now I should tell you that Carue and I can't come along." Vivi said, "We'd be far to recognizable." She had a point, she was the crown princess of Alabasta after all.

"Don't worry," Sanji called, "I'll take care of all of your shopping, Vivi, my love."

The princess smiled. The moment was interrupted by Carue frantically warking. "What's wrong, Carue?" Vivi asked.

The duck pointed towards the alcove next to us.

"Oh no."

"Um.." I frowned, in the alcove there was an odd looking boat, "Am I missing something?" It must have been another thing from Little Garden.

"That's Mr. 3's ship!" Vivi shouted.

"I thought he was gone? Couldn't someone else have just... I don't know, stolen it?"

"No, that ship needs Mr. 3's wax-wax fruit powers to run."

"Ah, So we're going to have to be extra careful." I turned, thinking, "Guess we really can't spend to long here, someone's got to find Luffy."

"I told you that he'd be fine on his own." Zoro said, glaring.

I turned again, "Well we can't let him run wild in a city full of people who want to kill us."

He glared harder. I jumped off the ship, "Sanji, I'm trusting you to do all my shopping."

"Of course, Leanah, my love!"

I took off running, getting into the city and finding Luffy as fast as possible was my only concern. Running in the desert is hard, in case you didn't know. There's no traction what-so-ever, it was a miracle I didn't fall flat on my face and get a mouth full of sand.

It was still odd having energy to burn, that well rested feeling, you know? I really couldn't wait to go back to training, but with Chopper still fretting, even now after I had assured him I felt completely fine.

Enough about that for now, where was I? Right, I entered the city, slowing to a walk. It was beautiful. Really, I mean, the buildings and clothes, vibrant colors and wonderful craftsmanship. I inquired the direction of the market from people nearby. They were all very helpful, some even offered to take me there, but I politely declined and just followed the directions they gave me,

I walked through the streets, lots of interesting things to buy. A blue haired woman passed by me, I recognized her before she me.

"Hey!" She shouted, I dashed forward and into an alleyway.

_Why is she here?_ I ran out onto the next street and continued running. _How much of a coincidence must it be for her to be here?_ As I ran I noticed a lot more marines than just her, and most of them looked familiar.

I continued on to another street, seeking refuge anywhere I could find. _Why are Lougetown marines here?_ I slowed down, taking refuge in a restaurant. _Great, just great, Smoker chased us into the Grand Line._ I huffed, _Oh well, if I wait here, I might have a chance at finding Luffy. Or getting caught trying too._ My stomach growled slightly, I looked around, it was a fairly nice place, with people enjoying meals at tables and one person stuffing his face at the bar. This seemed like a good a place as any, plus I might get a good meal myself. I walked over to the bar and sat next to the man.

"Excuse me, sir." I said addressing the man behind the counter, "I'd like some food please."

He walked over, "Of course, any idea what you'd like?"

"Uh..."

"Try the ham roast." The man next to me said. "Itsh really good."

I pointed at him, "I'll have what he recommended." Then I sat back as he went to get my food, "Oh! And two tequilas, please," The restaurant owner nodded, "Thanks mister." I said to the man beside me

"No problem." He ate a large bite of the food in front of him, _"Two _tequilas_,_ eh? You a heavy drinker?"

"I wouldn't say _heavy_ drinker..." I gave the man a smile, "I was actually hoping you might like one. Or can you con hold your liquor?" We both got a chuckle out of that.

I tapped the counter, I didn't like this feeling I was getting. I closed my eyes, then heard a thud next to me. My eyes snapped open, the man who had recommended my food was slumped forward with his face in his food.

"AHH!" A woman behind us screamed. "He died!"

"It must have been that poisonous desert spider."

I frowned, gently checking for a pulse. "He's not dead." I said, leaning back slightly, now getting a better look at the tattoo on his back. I felt like I should have known what it meant... I faintly remembered Shanks talking about a similar picture. _Must've been drunk than night._ I shifted forward again, pushing the man back into a sitting position, "He's sleeping." I confirmed.

I blinked, _His face..._ He was definitely handsome, even with all the flecks of food on his face. He was smiling, just slightly, a small trickle of redish juice running down his chin from his mouth.

A flash. _"You guys still loved me..._ _Thank you..." _

"_You said you wouldn't die!"_

I dropped him, and he slammed back into his plate. I gulped, breathing heavily. _What the hell was that?_ I asked myself.

The man sat up on his own and glanced around.

"He's alive!" Someone shouted, I pulled out my bandana and handed it to him.

He wiped off his face. "Thanks." The man offered it back to me, smiling, "I'm Ace."

I took it from him, "Leanah."

He looked around at the staring crowd. "What's wrong with everyone?"

"They thought you were dead."

he blinked, then took another bite, "Oh, is that all?" He looked over at me, "Do you mind if I ask you a question?"

I shook my head, "Oh, no. Not at all."

Ace pushed a wanted poster over to me, "Have you seen this person? I've been looking for him."

I picked it up, keeping a blank face when I saw it was Luffy's. "Monkey D. Luffy... He's that new comer from the East Blue." I set the poster down, "Why are you looking for him?"

Ace turned to me, smiling just like Luffy would, "He's my brother."

"He's your what-now?" I asked, wanting to make sure I heard him right.

"He's my little brother."

I smiled, "Well, fortune has smiled on you Ace, Luffy is my captain."

"Really?!" He was excited now, I chuckled they certainly acted similar.

I nodded, "Yep, I've been a part of his crew for... oh say the better part of ten days now." I leaned on the counter, "I joined as they left Lougetown to head for the Grand Line."

"Ten days?"

"With this crazy crew it feels like so much longer." I sighed, "Our chef and swordsman can't stop fighting and all Luffy talks about is punching bad guys, and meat."

Ace laughed, "Sounds like my little brother."

I laughed, "Well I would be really embarrassed if it didn't!"

finally the man working the place set my food in front of me and the two tequilas. I pushed one towards Ace, "Want it?"

He shrugged, "Never been one to turn down a gift."

I held out my glass to him, "Cheers, Ace."

"Cheers."

We drank the tequila and I finished up my food. "I'm actually looking for Luffy myself." I admitted.

"But... shouldn't you know where he is?"

"Ehh..." I frowned. "Well, he ran off because he was excited, and hungry, which is why I looked for a restaurant, thinking he would have come here first... but he's not."

"Evidently." We shared a smile.

"You've got some nerve eating in the middle of a public place like this." That voice sent a chill right up my spine. _Shit! How could I be so stupid!? Why did I stay here this long?!_ "Even for a division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates. Hello, Portgas D. Ace"

_Wait..._ I glanced over at Ace, catching another small look at his tattoo, then it all clicked. "Ohhh." _That's right... Shanks showed me a picture so I'd know who I could trust if I ever got separated from the crew..._

The man behind the counter had the same idea, "No way! Not the Whitebeard pirates!"

I turned away a bit, praying to god Smoker didn't recognize me.

"I'm curious..." He continued, "What's such a big shot pirate doing in a country like this?"

Ace slowly set down his cup, turning around, "Me? I'm looking for my little brother." Everything went quiet and they stared at each other. I shifted uneasily in my seat. "So, what do you want from me now, captain?"

"I just want you to come quietly."

"No thanks, I think I'll pass."

"I thought you might say that." I turned away more, "I'm in this country hunting down another band of pirates."

I went stiff, then started scooting away from Ace, "Wait," He looked over at me, "Where are you going, Leanah?"

"Leanah!?" I heard Smoker shout.

I groaned, "You've done it now, Ace." I muttered, turning around slowly and saluting, "Captain, pleasure to see you again."

"Right." He glared at me, biting down hard on his cigars.

"Ehehehe... Smoking will kill ya, you know..." I rubbed the back of my neck, trying to force a smile.

"So I was right. The Straw Hats are here." He crossed his arms.

"Well I've actually run into Tashigi a little while ago... She didn't seem to happy to see me either... Imagine that!" I joked again.

The marine let out a puff of smoke, "What I still can't understand is why you would leave the Re-"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" I shouted, waving my arms, "MY BUSINESS IS MY OWN!"

And a second later, a different shout was heard. And it was approaching quickly. Another moment and the sound was given shape as Luffy crashed into the unaware Smoker, who went flying along with him, then both of them crashed into Ace, and the three of them crashed through the wall.

I pursed my lips, "Well... I think it's time for my exit!" I ran out the door of the establishment, Luffy would catch up. Eventually. Besides, he had his brother to help him if he got in too much trouble.

**Author's Note:**

AH I'M SO SO SORRY YOU GUYS!

This took forever and it's not even that long. But I promise you (Like I did last time this happened as some of you older readers may recall) that I will finish up the rest of the chapters a bit faster, but still holding my same quality.

I was really amazed actually, because I kept getting story followers after so long! But any way...

Thank you for reading! Reviews are always appeariated!

Your ever willing author,  
>Kari910<p> 


	42. Important notice!

Happy New Years Eve or New Years!

I'm writing this to inform you all that major changes will be happening with loveable Leanah.

In fact, the whole story is changing.

I know many of you have waited with baited breath to see me rise from the grave yet again with a whole new chapter (Right after Ace comes in to, a shame because the next chapter was gonna be a killer)

But I can't sit by and let this continue as it is. I can do so much more with this story if I rewrote it.

I don't know when I'll be posting the story again, But rest assured I will be continuing Leanah's Story.

Your ever willing Author,  
>Kari910<p> 


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